Revival at the Champions League
by Younger P
Summary: The decennial Champions League has now begun. One Trainer makes his return to the world after having been missing for over a year. How much has he, along with every other powerful Trainer competing, learned since starting the Pokémon path? AbilityShipping, AshxAnabel, SatoLila, minor LachrymoseShipping, one-sided ConfidenceShipping
1. Prologue! The Sent Invitation!

**Disclaimer: This is my first Pokémon fic. For my reason in why I've decided to make one now and the inspiration behind the whole plot, just please read through this first chapter to the end where I'll explain the rest. I hope you readers enjoy this story! **

**One more note, unlike the anime, all the characters have actually aged a bit instead of staying ten or whatever they appeared at first in the show, but I'm sure you already know that.**

* * *

One long, drawn out year and a half had passed since the Unova League Vertress Conference, in which Pokémon Trainer Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town had competed in. The sixteen-year old Kanto Trainer had seemingly disappeared after traveling in the Decolora Archipelago, the only two friends and witnesses prior to his disappearance were Iris of the Village of Dragons and Connoisseur Cilan of Striaton City, his notably last two traveling companions. Not even they knew of his plans of the future aside from the usual training and capturing Pokémon to become the best that there ever was, as in where he was going after the Unova region.

But as this period of time comes to a close, a new adventure that many have waited for has finally arrived…

* * *

_Pewter City, Kanto region_

"Brock! I'm so proud of you, dear!" Lola cried out, completely hugging her eldest son, the said embarrassed young adult. "You finally did it!" She was joined with the many cheers of her children.

"We've gotten a Pokémon Medical prodigy in the family, that's for sure," Flint agreed.

The whole family was at home, gathered around the newly graduating Pokémon Doctor with certified PKMN M.D. on hand. Dressed in red robes and cap of the typical graduate student, Brock was sheepish in accepting the onslaught of praises flying his way from his parents and younger siblings.

"Come on now, guys, it certainly wasn't easy," Brock said. "I didn't think I advance this quickly in my studies."

"It just goes to show how much traveling around has helped you out, Big Bro," Forrest, the current Pewter City Gym Leader, said. "Now I kind of wish I went off on my own journey too. Just like you and Ash…"

Forrest immediately bit his tongue upon realizing what he just said. The whole family quieted themselves, knowing the sensitivity of the aforementioned topic. Brock lowered his head and gave a sad smile.

"Yeah, just like… Ash…"

"Hey now! This is a time to celebrate!" Lola exclaimed, lifting the mood back up. "Let's make a celebratory feast for our very own Dr. Brock!"

"Yeah!" the children cheered on. Even Brock couldn't help but allow such infectious joy lift his spirits up over not hearing from one of his closest friends for over a year now. Over their cheers, a truck was heard pulling up in front of their house and drove away seconds later.

"Mail time!" Flint announced, leaving the mini celebration to retrieve the mail.

While the patriarch of the family went to retrieve today's mail, Lola and the rest of the children went into the kitchen, leaving Brock by himself in the living room. He glanced at a particular wall that held the majority of photo frames hanging on. His thoughts were then brought to his own memory board, which held nothing more than three meaningful photos. The first to flash in his mind was that of him with Ash, Misty, and Pikachu while first traveling through the Kanto region. Then there was another frame of him with Ash once more, this time with the exuberant pair of May and Max at the Hoenn region. Finally there was the Sinnoh region frame that held a photo of him, Ash, and Dawn: his last journey with Ash…

_Where are you, old friend?_ Brock pondered solemnly. _Everyone you knew misses you, you have no idea…_

"Forrest!" Flint's gruff voice beckoned from the front door. "You got a special letter!"

The second oldest child of the family ran out of the kitchen to see the letter for himself. As Flint passed on the letter, Brock quickly noticed the seal that was on the envelope, a very special seal indeed.

"That's from the Pokémon League."

"I wonder what they want from us this time," Forrest commented, beginning to tear through the top. "They've already been made aware that I'm the _official_ Gym Leader for the Pewter City Gym."

Both Brock and Flint pondered upon what the Pokémon League Committee would want from them, more like want with Forrest, to be sending an officially sealed letter as such as Forrest took the parchment out of the envelope. He appeared to be skimming from top to bottom, his worrisome expression gradually turning into that of disbelief and finally awestruck.

"No way…" Forrest managed to gasp.

"What is it, Forrest?" Brock asked. His brother smiled widely.

"Everyone! Come listen to this!" Forrest yelled out, the rest of the family leaving the kitchen behind to gather around the young Pewter Gym Leader.

* * *

_Cerulean City, Kanto region_

"All right, team! Great work today!" Misty exclaimed, followed by the cheerful reactions of her Water-type Pokémon in the main pool of the Cerulean City Gym. "We should be ready for any challenger at any moment."

"Hey, sis!" an older female voice beckoned. Hurried flip-flop footsteps were heard echoing in the hallway.

"Daisy?"

The oldest sister, Daisy, jogged in from the hallway, waving an envelope in her hand high in the air. She slowed down as she approached her youngest sister by the poolside, just so that she wouldn't slip on accident. Upon coming to a complete stop before Misty, she leaned upon her knees just to catch her breath.

"Geez… I need… to get… in better… shape…," Daisy mumbled between breaths.

"Daisy, what's going on?" Misty asked.

The oldest Sensational Sister held out the letter to her while still catching her breath. Misty gingerly took the envelope, noticing firsthand that it was emblazoned with the official seal of the Pokémon League. It would explain why Daisy rushed in giving her the letter. Anything from the Pokémon League addressed specifically to the Gym Leaders or any other significant Trainers would be regarded as very important. Wordlessly and almost instinctively, she began breaking the seal of the envelope.

"What's… it say?" Daisy inquired, standing back to full height.

"Don't know yet," Misty replied as she took the letter out. "I wonder if this is addressed to all the Gym Leaders here in Kanto."

* * *

_Saffron City, Kanto region_

"Oh, Haunter, what've you got there?" Sabrina asked the Gas Pokémon floating animatedly next to her.

Haunter simply decided to phase into her room, not that she minded as she always welcomed its presence. There was something that looked rather special and possibly important gripped within the Gas Pokémon's disembodied hand, like an official letter.

"_Hau Hau Hau!_" Haunter cackled, extended the fist that held the seeming letter.

Just as the Saffron City Gym Leader was about to accept the letter, it suddenly popped into smoke as Haunter opened its hand. Its raucous laughter ensued, followed with Sabrina's soft giggle as she retracted her hand.

"Okay, Haunter, you've had your laugh now, but I need to confirm this sense of anticipation I'm feeling right now," Sabrina said, straightening herself out into a more stoic persona. "I don't even have to use my powers to know what may possibly be inside that letter."

Dealing with Haunter's seemingly infinite bag of hilarious pranks almost every day since joining her as to keep her happy, she knew the time and place to be truly serious. Of course, she was thankful that it didn't invite its other friends, Gastly and Gengar from Lavender Town, at this time. There was no hope in ever keeping a straight face with this infamous Ghost trio pulling out all stops with their practical jokes and gags. As tempted as it was to continue, Haunter grudgingly recognized serious business when it came up. As such, it stuck one hand into its large mouth, suddenly pulling out a large beautiful bouquet of colorful flowers.

"_Haun-ta… Haun-ta,_" Haunter chuckled, lifting the bouquet up to Sabrina while angling its body in a way that it appeared that it was proposing to her.

"Haunter, that's so sweet," Sabrina commented, noticing the letter nudged into the center of the flowers.

Just about as she reached into the bouquet, all flower buds went erect and sprayed water into her face. Haunter just couldn't resist pulling off this last prank.

"_Hau Hau Hau! Haun-t-t-__ta?_"

Haunter found itself suddenly discovered itself to be bound by psychic power. Comically shifting its beady pupils to see the culprit using Psychic on it, the Gas Pokémon discovered Sabrina's Alakazam doing the honors of keeping it completely captive. Meanwhile, the Saffron City Gym Leader herself had quickly dried herself from the water flower gag attack and began to open the letter.

"Sorry, Haunter, but you really do need to learn some self-control," Sabrina said calmly in spite of the Gas Pokémon's funny gags. She quickly examined the letter with her natural neutral expression before a small smile curved itself at the corner of her mouth. _Just as I thought… This coming from the Pokémon League, I can predict this happening to even the Gym Leaders outside of the Kanto region._

* * *

_Petalburg City, Hoenn region_

"_WAH! No way!_"

"Max, what is it?!"

May ran into the living room where she heard her younger brother shout. Their father, Norman, followed in behind her. They found the young budding Pokémon Trainer trembling rather enthusiastically with an important-looking envelope clutched in both hands. His face gave off the expression that he might as well be drooling with his mouth agape in a very wide grin. Max's Treecko had its eyes closed with a hand placed on its forehead, embarrassed of its Trainer's behavior.

"What's that you got there, Max?" Norman asked.

"Dad! I hope you didn't mind!" Max sputtered out, scrambling himself in front of his sister and father. "I couldn't help myself! I'm sorry!"

"Whoa, slow down there. You couldn't help yourself to what?"

"This letter is actually addressed to you, Dad," Max said, having calmed down before looking to the ground bashfully. "It was from the Pokémon League. I got really curious to see what they wanted."

Max gingerly handed the opened letter to Norman. The Petalburg City Gym Leader retrieved it wordlessly and skipped to see what had gotten his son so excited a few minutes ago in the first place.

"Really, Max," May sighed with folded arms. "Even having started your own journey, you still do childish things like taking other people's mail."

"Oh, please. Like I need a lecture of personal space from _you_, of all people!"

"Why, you little!"

"Kids, that's enough!" Norman barked. The two siblings immediately behaved themselves and ceased their bickering. Norman smiled back at them. "Now then, I can see why Max would have gotten excited after reading this."

"You mean, you're not mad after he read your own mail?" May inquired.

"We'll discuss a proper punishment for that soon, but there's something I think you guys would really enjoy from this letter, given that it's officially sent from the Pokémon League Committee," Norman said.

"Ohh, boy! This is going to be so awesome!" Max tittered.

"Just what is that letter all about, Dad?" May asked.

"I can begin telling you this," Norman began, "that this will entail not only the Gym Leaders from Hoenn, Kanto, Johto, Sinnoh, and Unova, but every powerful Trainer out there fully recognized by the Pokémon League…"

* * *

_Veilstone City, Sinnoh region_

The house had been quiet for quite some time now. He was finally back home after his usual regiment of difficult training with his Pokémon, but even with all the experience he had gained from his entire journey, he still was not good enough. He still could not beat the man that defeated his older brother. Regardless of how close the last battle was, he still lost a bit of control over his emotions, still feeling the embitterment of his brother disgraced all those years ago.

But he knew he changed a lot now. He could see it even in the demeanor of his own Pokémon, that they showed a bit more emotion, happiness, and life aside from being the closest to perfect battling soldiers. It was thanks to another Trainer for helping him realize that not everything was as clear-cut black-and-white as he originally saw it, regarding training and raising Pokémon. He sat in the living room of his house, deep in thought. The line of his sight was directly upon a particular framed case on the wall, one of which belonging to his brother.

_Only six Symbols…_

"Paul, looks like you got something," a friendly male voice spoke up, snapping the said young man from his trance.

"Huh?" Paul grunted.

He looked up to Reggie, who was smiling and holding an important-looking letter in one hand. Paul blinked a few times before standing up full height to meet him for his letter. Without any more exchanges of words, he took the letter from his older brother and tore it upon right there.

"It's from the Pokémon League," Reggie clarified. "I wonder what they want with you now."

Paul didn't respond. He was more intent with finding out what was being said in the envelope. He didn't even notice Reggie walking behind him to read alongside with him what the letter said. He was completely mesmerized by the message. A smile, only noticeable at a very close range, started to form on Paul's face while Reggie playfully ruffled his younger brother's thick hair.

"I guess congratulations are in order then, Paul. I guess you've certainly earned some solid recognition from the top dogs now."

"Right," Paul said with a brief nod. "If the message in this letter is as true as it claims to be, then two of the Trainers I want to fight and beat should be eligible as well."

"I don't doubt it. But Paul…"

Reggie looked away briefly. Paul fell into a somber mood quickly, catching on what his brother was going to say anyway. It was not necessarily a sensitive topic for them, though they could imagine it being for a certain group of Trainers, it felt rather strange to openly discuss it.

"I know."

"It's been over a year now. He still hasn't been found yet. Who knows what could have happened to him? A lot can happen within just one year, you know."

Paul glanced out to the backyard window, where the rest of his Pokémon and more that Reggie had been taking care of now were at, either playing or relaxing. He felt a fiery passion burn within him, strong enough to pull him out of the momentary depression he was in from his recent loss. Much to Reggie's surprise, he smirked for the first time in days since coming home discouraged and frustrated.

"He can't stay in hiding forever," Paul said. "He'll come, as well as the other. And once both of them have gathered, I'll prove my power to the both of them once and for all."

* * *

_Pallet Town, Kanto region_

"Oh, goody, the mail's here," Delia said, watching the Pidgeot mail truck pull away from the front of her house.

Mimey, her Mr. Mime, continued to sweep up the floor behind her as she went to the mailbox to retrieve the various letters sticking out from the opening. Unbeknownst to her, something was flying a fair distance away from her residence, seemingly watching her movement as she sorted through the mail.

"_Mime… Mime…_" Mimey sang to itself as it continued to sweep away.

"It seems like there are the usual letters," Delia noted, thoroughly looking through each one. She started to frown slightly as she shuffled through them. "Hmm, I was hoping to see more of his letters in here. Really now, if he plans to stay out of sight from the world, the _very least_ he could do is keep in touch with me. I _am_ his mother, and it's my right to do so."

Delia managed to sort through all the letters, sighing in disappointment that there was not even a single written letter from her only son. She accepted the fact that he was an independent Pokémon Trainer, but with everything that has happened since the past year had started to take its toll on her motherly worry meter. It was only after bringing herself out of her worries that she noticed a special-looking envelope in the bottom of the pile.

"What's this?" Delia inquired, pulling it out from the rest of the letters.

"_Pidgeo! Pidgeo… Toh!_"

A loud screech echoed in the skies of Pallet Town. It immediately stole Delia's attention away from the peculiar letter that she was going to further examine. Looking towards the direction from where the screech came from, she glanced in the sky that something large was diving right towards her. She could not get a good visual on the creature as the sun was at its back. The creature's speed, along with the rays of the sun, had momentarily blinded her.

As on instinct, Delia immediately dove to the ground. She felt the wind whip around her as the creature flew over her at such a high speed. Taking a chance to see if it was gone, she opened her eyes and confirmed it as she watched it fly off west. Her fingers were feeling something missing.

"Hm?!" Delia gasped.

The special letter was gone. No doubt, the flying creature had stolen it from its swift swoop. Before she was about to act on her rising rage, she caught from the bottom corner of her eye a new letter on the ground lying a short distance before her feet. She didn't recognize it from being from the original pile from today's delivery. However, what she did recognize from the new letter as she picked it up was the familiar messy handwriting of someone she wanted to hear from.

_At least he did remember to write…_

* * *

_Vermillion City, Kanto region_

Within Vermillion City was the Headquarters for the Battle Frontier, built up upon the former construction site since seven years ago. It took long time for it to be built, with the needs of many resources and a lot of funding, but it was completed a while back. It was a place for the members of the Battle Frontier, the Frontier Brains of Kanto and Sinnoh, if necessary, to gather and discuss on future plans and propositions.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming on my behalf," Scott announced.

The seven Frontier Brains of Kanto were seated formally around a large round table, along with the five Frontier Brains from Sinnoh. They, having been employed by Scott for x amount of time now, were eager to hear out this special announcement. It was special enough to pull all of them from their posts, and special enough to pull the Sinnoh Frontier Brains into traveling to the Kanto region to hear out their boss.

"What do you have planned for us, Scott?" Brandon spoke up. "Is this to lure more powerful Trainers into challenging the Battle Frontier?" Scott merely smiled back at the stern Pyramid King.

"Something like that, old friend," Scott said, pulling out a peculiar looking envelope from his pocket.

"That's from the Pokémon League Committee!" Thorton declared upon first sight of the envelope. The seal had already been broken.

"What's this all about, Scott?" Greta demanded impatiently. The portly leader still kept a jovial smile despite of all the surprised looks he was getting.

"A little publicity would never hurt," Scott began. "After all, regarding anyone _and_ everyone who has read this letter will know that time has come, for every evaluating decade…"

* * *

"The Champions League has begun."

* * *

**As you have read by now, I'm also trying my hand a writing a Champion League story with the element of Ash missing from the world for a period of time. The prologue should have given you an idea of what's to take place. Anyway, I feel the need to explain a bit more on what I hope and plan to accomplish with this:**

**I watched the Decolora ending in Japanese on YouTube. It was a catchy tune and everything it showed, up to all major characters and rivals from the past started holding hands, appeared as though the series was to come to an end, at least that's what I thought. **

**One has to wonder what the Champion League for someone would be like. I know I read somewhere, in the anime, that one has to first win a League Conference to win the right to challenge the Elite Four of the region it was held in. It felt a bit restrictive to write around with, so I making this special addendum that this particular tournament happens every ten years. The Pokémon League keeps tabs on the strong Trainers that have competed and invite those that meet the high qualifications. And apparently, the Gym Leaders and the Frontier Brains are invited as well. I'll reveal more in future chapters. The ideas are in my head, albeit rather unorganized and not yet put on paper.**

**And, I'm starting out by following the footsteps of my brother. If you had not already checked my profile page, then it's time you knew that I'm legitimately related to the one and only… MisterP! So I'm pretty much borrowing some elements from stories I've read anonymously and following a little template he's given me for if ever I wanted to start an account here. But don't worry. I won't write anything that's he's already written. I'm making this as original as I can. Ex: I called it "Champions" instead of "Champion." ;P**

**I might as well join the bandwagon of "world-tournament-AbilityShipping" stories out there. It looked like a fine place to start, but would no doubt take up much commitment. I don't plan on using a lot of OCs. I think they're hard to keep track of. I pretty much am going to try to pull characters from the games and anime as much as I can and use them when appropriate. I promise I won't abandon this though, but my updates will be rather slow. And my future chapters, outside of battles, won't be as long as this prologue.**

**Well, it's time to measure how my writing skills are. Please review! **

**L-ater!**


	2. All Set! Regulations and Expectations!

**Ha ha ha! You readers and reviews are really too kind. Most of the reviews and messages I've received so far have been really warming and welcoming. I'm thankful for you guys accepting me in, though part of it would have been my announcement of my blood relation with MisterP. I showed him my current progress here so far the second night this story's been up, with the reviews and messages aaaaand…**

**He fell to the floor cracking up for a good five minutes. He's really flattered and in truth misses you guys for supporting him. It brought back some nostalgia for him, writing and sharing stories with you all.**

**Well, I should be getting into the swing of things now. Thank goodness for extra free time from Memorial Day to be able to work on this…**

* * *

"I… I still don't understand," Forrest said, staring hard into the Pokémon League letter in his trembling hands. "I was barely appointed the official Gym Leader almost a year ago now. I can't just suddenly jump into some Championship League Conference or something like that! I'm not ready! I'm just not!"

"Forrest, it's alright," Brock said, grabbing his younger brother by the shoulders to keep him steady. "It's understandable that not many of us would be aware of this, considering how rare this event takes place."

"Ah, the Champions League," Flint sighed in bliss as he wrapped an arm around his wife's waist. "The battles from last decade were some of the most treasured memories your mother and I shared. The greatest Trainers all around the regions coming together, but now…!"

"A lot more are going to enter this time, honey," Lola added, falling into Flint's embrace. "Even though you didn't last for a long time while you were the Pewter City Gym Leader, you've certainly caught this girl's eye in the battlefield."

"Oh, sweetheart…!"

"Oh, honeycakes…!"

"Oh, brother…," Brock sighed, alongside his younger siblings from being objected to their parents' finer moments.

"Brock, you still didn't tell me," Forrest called out. "What's the 'Champions League' really about?"

"It goes something like this…"

* * *

"You're already aware on how Trainers that defeat everyone else in a League Conference are given the privilege to fight the Elite Four and Champion, right Misty?" Daisy reassured.

"Yeah, I mean, it is kind of obvious," Misty replied.

She and her eldest sister were walking down a large hallway leading away from the main Cerulean Gym pool, passing through the aquarium windows with various Water-type Pokémon glancing and waving at them for some attention. They were as pleasantly happy as can be frolicking around underwater and playing underwater games with each other.

"Well, something I didn't even catch on before you took over as Gym Leader was that this Champions League was formulated by the Pokémon League almost over fifteen years ago."

"Whoa… We were practically still toddlers then, and Mom was set in charge of the Cerulean Gym back then," Misty commented, rather awestruck from the news.

"Mm-hmm, and it gets even better, sis," Daisy continued, placing a tender arm around her sister's shoulders and slowly pulling themselves closer. "I never really imagined myself telling you this kind of stuff, but you were bound to learn about this eventually."

* * *

"This regional Conference, if you want to call it that, gives Trainers that have endured the opportunity to battle the strongest," Sabrina explained, quickly tucking a tuft of her dark gray-blue hair behind her head before continuing. "Of course, some sort of line had to be established so that the Pokémon League could… enforce… Um, Erika… did I lose you?"

The Saffron Gym Leader waved a hand in front of her fellow colleague as she had apparently fallen into some sort of trance. It only took a few seconds for Erika to react and end up giggling in sheepish embarrassment.

"Sorry about that, Sabrina, it's just…," Erika drew out while Sabrina merely raised an eyebrow at her.

"… Just what?"

"I, uh, can't help but be amazed with your new sense of wardrobe," she awkwardly confessed cheerily, receiving a deadpan response from the Kanto Psychic Gym Leader. "I mean, before you dressed up so conservatively, one could have mistaken you a nun, albeit wearing red clothes. But now, look at you! So casual and cute with that pink spaghetti-string tank top! And you even freshened up your hair as well! I have to say, the darker hair really suits the 'Psychic Mistress' image."

"Can we just move back to our original subject on the Champions League and not on my… complete… image… makeover?" Sabrina suggested through a rather strangled tone before regaining control over her momentary embarrassment. "You still don't know too much about it as you weren't made Gym Leader until… sometime after…"

"Well, you have been wearing this image for a good amount of time now," Erika continued, somehow ignoring Sabrina's statements. "I know I really grew accustomed to wearing a kimono twenty-four/seven. And darkening my hair also felt really refreshing."

Before the Celadon Gym Leader could continue her rambling, she felt a cold hand place itself on one of her shoulders. Erika stopped, half expecting to see Sabrina doing the act herself, but the Saffron Gym Leader merely stared back at her with her usual straight poker face and her hands in front of her. Upon a quick mental analysis, she started to determine if Sabrina did not place a hand on her, then who did? One robotic turn to see who nearly, in the metaphorical sense, made her eyes bulge out in shock almost like the eyes of that were literally bulging out of their sockets.

"_Hau Hau Haun-ta!_"

"EEK!" Erika shrieked loudly, reflexively stumbling over her feet from the surprise scare attack Haunter had set up for her. Sabrina couldn't hold back a giggle, not even with a hand covering her mouth.

"Are you ready to listen now, Erika?" Sabrina asked.

Luckily for the Celadon Gym Leader, her Vileplume caught her on top of its large petals. Erika rebalanced herself using Vileplume as the base. She looked back to Sabrina and answered her question with a meek nod. Haunter floated back to Sabrina's side, to which the latter petted the former's head for a job well done in getting things back on track.

"I'm sorry," Erika said with a gracious bow.

"As I was saying, the Pokémon League had set certain limitations for Pokémon Trainers that have competed in past Conferences, just to give the ones that have endured a shot to become a Champion Master…"

* * *

"Because of this, Gym Leaders and the Elite Four are automatically involved this special Conference as we work under the jurisdiction of the Pokémon League," Norman continued. "You both know my role as a Gym Leader is to test the strengths of every Trainer that challenges my Gym. Relating it to the Champions League, this same role gets carried over, but up to higher stakes."

The whole family, including their friendly neighborhood qualified Gym assistant, Kenny, sat together in the main room of the home. Max and May were leaning close on their knees, listening to the history of the Champions League's establishment. Their Pokémon were also listening from the side. Norman kept an arm around his wife, Caroline, while she snuggled close into him.

"I can't imagine having such a difficult job," May said. "I don't think I'd ever be prepared for something as big as this. Makes me kind of glad I became a Coordinator instead."

"Dad, you said the Gym Leaders and Elite Four from the mentioned regions are part of it," Max began, "but how do they select the Trainers? How does the Pokémon League even know?" Norman gave a small smile and chuckle.

"The ones in charge of the Committee are dedicated in watching over potential new Trainers that can become the strongest," Norman explained. "They have spies that keep record of all registered Trainers out there, just as they do in inspecting Gyms."

"How tough do the Trainers have to be for the League to notice them?"

"These standards were set many years ago. It is recommended for a Trainer to place, at a minimum, at either four consecutive times at the Top Sixteen of any regional Conference, two consecutive times at the Top Eight, or one time among the Top Four at any given regional League Conference. Of course, Conference winners are automatic shoo-ins to compete while everyone else is taken under serious and thoughtful consideration."

"That's really intense," Max said, suddenly feeling overwhelmed. "I just started out and already I don't have the makings of entering the Champions League. I just barely got into the Top Sixteen in the Ever Grande Conference."

"Max, you're still a young boy, just give it time and patience," Caroline said comfortingly. "You have a chance if you work hard and become a Conference Champion. Then you'd be admitted in challenging the Elite Four."

"I… I guess that's true, if I don't die of humiliation before I'm twenty," Max mumbled, calming down. "But now I wonder…"

He looked up and met his older sister's suddenly somber gaze. For some unexplainable reason, they both could tell that they were thinking of the same thing. All this talk about Pokémon Championships and becoming the best brought one topic to mind. Rather, one sorely missed friend and mentor to mind.

"Will we see _him_ there?"

* * *

"I have no doubt in my mind that there's no way he's passing up this opportunity of a lifetime," Paul said. "He'd have to be really pathetic _not_ to go to the Champions League."

"If you're certain about it, then it's probably not likely that the Pokémon League would quickly screen him out just because of his… absence," Reggie added. "We just have to go there for ourselves and see if he's going to register."

"Right."

Paul looked down for a moment before another curious thought entered into his mind. An answer was already being provided for his doubt and though he felt that it would be redundant to speak and ask his older brother about, there would be nothing for him to lose to do so.

"Something's up, Paul?"

"You said the Gym Leaders and the Elite Four from the main regions are being pulled together for this, right?"

"That's right."

"Of course it's obvious that the Champions would be available as well."

Reggie gave another affirmative nod.

"But what of the Frontier Brains? They're a talented bunch of Pokémon Trainers, no doubt. But they don't belong to the Pokémon League."

Reggie smiled at his younger brother's ingenuity. Paul never skipped any detail on any situation and took just enough time pondering the essentials. To be this interested to know if the Trainers he sought to fight would be able to attend only proved how much the young Veilstone Trainer was eager getting involved.

"You're right, Paul. They don't belong to the Pokémon League, and they don't have business to be associated with them whatsoever. But I think…"

* * *

"Part on how the Pokémon League was able to allow me to enlist you among Gym Leaders was simply business," Scott explained, though many Frontier Brains still were shocked from the sudden news. "My good friend, Charles, was even supportive of the notion. Yes, Anabel?" The Salon Maiden had her hand held up high from his last sentence.

"Do you mean _the_ President Goodshow of the Pokémon League?" Anabel asked. Scott smiled back jovially.

"The one and the same."

Not-so-quiet murmurs erupted around the round table of Frontier Brains as they conversed with each other of the possibilities their leader had just opened up. Scott wasn't fazed with it, staying as casual as he normally did. In about a minute, the murmurs quieted down and Palmer, the other Tower Tycoon, stood up.

"Scott, not that there is anything bad about it, but some of us actually wonder if we do have a say in this, considering that you signed all of us up for one of the most-renowned and toughest League to be established," Palmer said.

"I have no doubts in all of your abilities as I've seen each and every one of you battle in your respective elements. Pokémon battling has been the same today, yesterday, and tomorrow. You'll just need to take what you have learned from your special gimmicks against your challengers and give the participating Trainers a battle to remember for the rest of their lives, which is until the next Champions League comes around in the next ten years."

"I see."

Palmer took back his seat and was almost immediately replaced by Greta. While she had taken the news to be sudden, she leveled out and spoke on rather eager terms.

"I've got a question too. How long has this Champions League been going on?"

"You might be surprised, Greta, but this is going to be the _second_ Champions League to take place according to history," Scott replied, eliciting some stunned responses from her, Anabel, and Thorton. "Of course, you three Frontier Brains reacting as such, you are the youngest among the group."

"I… I knew what the Champions League is about, but… I never realized it was so close to now since it began," Anabel said, amazed with the discovery.

"Regardless," Scott said, facing back to Palmer. "I actually have one more thing to say for your previous question. As for participation, it is actually optional, just like for any other Trainer that receives the invitation to compete." This time, everyone was provoked into another shocked state. "I only said that I signed all of you up because I am confident in your abilities in battle. No doubt, this will be an opportunity to extend the Battle Frontier invitation to many potential Trainers from this."

"And how many should we keep an eye on?" Noland spoke up this time.

"The truth is that the Pokémon League will keep things under a certain limit for the number of Trainers invited, which I guess around two-hundred to two-fifty in attendance, you Frontier Brains, Gym Leaders, Elite Four members, and Champions included. The Committee, along with help from the Elite Four and Champions of the five prominent regions, have considered which Trainers would be worthy to take on the strongest of the strong. And it'll be your job, along with the Gym Leaders, to help screen them out. But of course, if you want to strive to attain the title of Champion Master for yourself, I won't hold you back. In fact, that'll only bring more popularity to the Battle Frontier and plant the desire for many Trainers to battle you."

"So basically, we're all eliminators to weed out the weaker ones," Lucy surmised, to which her portly boss nodded.

"Don't think about it too much like that," Tucker whispered to the Pike Queen. "Chances are that the invitations would already scare off some Trainers that don't feel ready to take the challenge."

"You actually bring up a very good point, Tucker," Scott said, having overheard the brief exchange. "The Champions League is a _very_ big deal. Many Trainers have worked much of their lives for an opportunity like this. Other Trainers may feel inadequate to compete and thus withdraw if by chance they do receive the special invitation. However, I can think of a few myself who'd appear in a heartbeat just to compete, speaking of which one of them having taken the Kanto Frontier challenge quite a few years back now."

"Really? Like who?" Tucker asked.

No doubt they all had a lot of challengers knocking at their door for a Symbol. They lost track on the many faces that challenged them but lost. The winners, being few in number, stood out the most. Fortunately for one Frontier Brain, no one caught on the mild blush she sported on her face upon thinking about her favorite, but missed challenger. Even she was aware of the current news around him and was worried dearly when no new announcement over him came up, but such a concern would have to be discussed and resolved later on one way or another.

"As much as I would like to open up the list for the afternoon, I'm rather spent on time," Scott said, scratching the back of his head with a chuckle. "Plus, it's almost dinner. Stick around, because I'm treating you guys for this. One last question before we end this meeting. Are you all into competing in the Champions League?"

All twelve Frontier Brains glanced around at each other, locking eyes in almost a rhythmic pattern. Their gazes were strong and resolute. As if they were a trained militia, they all turned to face Scott and gave him their unanimous nods of approval.

"I think I can speak for everyone here that we all accept the terms of competing in the Champions League," Brandon declared, "and that we all look forward to it."

"Excellent, then. Oh! Before I forget, the Champions League will begin in exactly one month from now. It'll be rather ongoing and a slow process, given with the number of competitors entering, unlike smaller regional League Conferences. And−."

"_NO!_ You dare having neglected to tell us such vital information before sending us off blindly into battle?" Brandon berated, much to everyone else's initial shock from the infamous shout of the Pyramid King.

"Eh heh heh, food had replaced the thought overtime, my bad," Scott replied sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. "Anyway, as for the location of this decade's Champions League, it was decided to change constantly. The first one ten years ago was actually held back in the Sinnoh region. This time it will be held here at the Kanto region…"

* * *

"… At a place called 'New Island.'"

* * *

**I stayed with the sequence from the previous chapter for convenience. I didn't feel like including in **_**every**_** Gym Leader and significant Trainer out there from the anime in the first chapters, I was sure the dialogues would explain for themselves. Anyway, the main characters, as well as different ones, would make themselves known as the story progresses, though I wonder if you readers have an idea which ones are going to be made prominent here based on what's going on now. I'll introduce more around the next few chapters. Also, any of you remember New Island?**

**Anyway, most of the game characters here (mainly Gym Leaders, as well as others that appear in the anime) will be updated to their recent appearances and portrayals, hence the example with Sabrina and Erika. Personally, I kind of like their new looks. And I realized that I gave Erika a bit of an airheaded personality, but then again, you'd be the same way if you spent time around perfume making and Sleep Powder 24/7 for x amount of years. It's also indicated in the games that she dozes off at times, probably because of the Sleep Powder. **

**Also, thanks for the anonymous reviewer for pointing out a mistake last chapter with Brock's degree. I fixed it. Just goes to show that I'm prone to making careless mistakes as such, even with terminology such as Ph.D. and M.D. Meh. **

**One more thing. Prior to publishing this story, I was well aware of the possibility that my writing style would somehow be linked back to my brother's. Truth is that he taught me a lot, everything I know really. He used to help me with English and grammar while I was in high school, even instilling his own brand of eloquence into me, which is how and why my writing is somewhat similar to his. That's another reason I willingly openly announced my relation with him as it would be questioned eventually. He's proud of my dedication and has been supportive despite the fact that he has moved on (he's also given me permission to say whatever we talk about in author's notes, just only to be wise about what I say here.) **

**I'm also aware that I will not be liked by everyone here as my brother also had a "small hate group." But haters are haters. No sense in trying to please them if they don't want anything to do with you, nor in purposely provoking them into more hate as well. **

**Anyway, he certainly thinks I can surpass him and his Stardom series, but we'll see. Just remember that I'm not MisterP, I am the Younger P. It's up to you readers to differentiate between us. Of course, with more free time now than the last three years when he was still here, MisterP has even offered to write a chapter in the near future for this story. It's more like a "Guest Chapter" than an actual collaboration, but I think it more to be the latter. He's inspired and helped me enough out on this side of the computer. I also hope to hear from you readers on the other side. **

**And a thousand pardons for my extensive author's note. This will lessen as the story progresses.**

**Well, it's time to measure how my writing skills are. Please review!**

**L-ater!**


	3. Stay Hopeful! Enter Ash the Unknown!

**Here's my first "somewhat normal" chapter now that I got around making sure you readers have understood the basis of the Champions League. Things will go on a bit slow just to build up some suspense and a few other things just to be ready, but the events that take place in between should be satisfactory. That's just my style, or the style I'm working out with for now. But by now, most of you readers are probably familiar with the Pokémon mechanics, mainly from the anime and some from the games. **

**One more thing. June 4, 2013 is actually the third-year anniversary since my brother, MisterP, announced his retirement from fan fiction, at least according to when he last updated his bio page. I know it's not something one would go around celebrating, but I found it coincidental while exploring the site and finishing up this chapter. So I thought that this day has some significance where one of the first main AbilityShipping authors finishes, more authors rise and take the place. Interesting, no?**

* * *

"Alright, if there aren't any more questions to be openly discussed, I declare this meeting to be over," Scott announced, clapping twice. "Dismissed. Let's go celebrate this opportunity. Follow me to the main dining room in an orderly fashion."

"We're not little kids, you know," Dahlia spoke out jokingly as the other Frontier Brains pulled themselves out of their seats. "Well, three-fourths of us aren't anyway."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Thorton shot back at his Sinnoh colleague.

"Now there, no need to worry," Dahlia replied, albeit in singsong and throwing quick dance poses for fun. "There's nothing wrong with being as young as you. Life's fortune smiles at your progress here."

"That better not be your 'special' way of making fun of my age. It takes a genius at my age to even make in the Battle Frontier, mind you."

The Sinnoh Factory Head continued to argue alongside Dahlia, who simply appeared to take it in all in stride. Most of the other Frontier Brains ignored them and went about their own business, either taking off from Headquarters or accepting Scott's offer for a free grand meal. Tailing the back of the traveling group were Anabel and Greta, consumed within their own conversation while the rest, save it for Thorton and Dahlia, walked silently onward to the dining hall.

"Can you believe that we're going to compete in a League tournament that is said to rival Elite Four challenges?!" Greta exclaimed. "We didn't even have to go out and get Gym Badges and compete in Conferences. Although that was before we joined the Battle Frontier."

"I have to agree with you there, Greta," Anabel said, though not showing the same level of enthusiasm she bore on with a gracious smile. "I know that it's been a while for me since I was a roaming Pokémon Trainer. I don't think I even remember all the rules for Conferences like these."

"Ah, they're practically the same as the way you do things in the Battle Tower, Anabel," the Arena Tycoon replied, shrugging. "Only this time, you will need to rely on _six_ Pokémon once you advance into the later rounds, which I'm confident that you, Brandon, Palmer, and Argenta have a shot in making."

"Oh, stop. While I don't completely doubt your claims and that in overall ranking I fall under Brandon and Palmer, competing in a large environment with many Pokémon fans shouting all around is kind of overwhelming to me. I'm not as used to it as before I joined the Battle Frontier."

"We just need to prepare in the coming month before we leave to New Island. It'll be so exciting that I can already taste the adrenaline rushes! Oish!"

"Well, you're certainly optimistic," Anabel commented with a slight laugh.

The Salon Maiden turned away from her Frontier colleague and slightly leaned her head down as they continued walking through the long hallway to the dining area. This was the first time she would debut in a large crowd of people and Pokémon since she last competed in her first League Conference many years back and before Scott invited her to become a member of the Kanto Battle Frontier. Anabel always kept to herself and desired peace and quiet more than anything else. That was who she was. Unlike some of the Frontier Brains in their proper Battle Facilities, she never invited crowds to the Battle Tower whenever challengers came for the Ability Symbol. Not even close acquaintances or old friends. It was just her, her hired referee Maron, and the challenger. There was one time her older brother came to visit when…

"Hey, earth to Anabel!"

"H-Huh?"

"Finally got your attention," Greta muttered with a quiet groan. "You seemed to have spaced out for a bit. Thinking about someone?"

"Well, in a sense, I was," Anabel replied, tapping her fingers together. "Just someone I hope to battle or at least see there."

"Oh? Thinking about Lucian?"

"Huh…? Yeah… He's definitely a powerful Trainer that I do hope to surpass one day," Anabel said, sounding somewhat uncertain. Greta took careful note of it.

"I know how much you confided in me about yourself, Anabel. I know you'll break out of his shadow someday and make a name for yourself without others referring to you as the 'little crybaby sister of an Elite Four' and stuff like that."

"Gee… thanks for that," Anabel replied through her teeth, self-consciously aware of the interjected and despised title Greta unconsciously imposed on her.

"Anyway, this Champions League is going to be fun!" Greta declared. She then took up a pondering pose with a hand under her chin. "I wonder who else is going to compete… Hmm…"

"Um, Greta? Let's save the excitement for later, okay?"

"I know! I remember that fiery Trainer a long ways back who was one of the first few to claim the Guts Symbol. Hey, Anabel, do you remember Ash of Pallet Town?"

"Greta, do we have to go through this _now_?" Anabel pleaded, starting to get annoyed with her friend's consistent rambling. It certainly didn't help when she had to bring _him_ into the conversation. _And about Ash too…? *sigh*_

"That guy certainly would have the makings to make it far since he managed to be Brandon. He and his Pokémon were pretty strong back then. I wonder what he's like now. I wonder if he's still even a scrawny kid now or a buffed-out beefcake from all that training he's done since he challenged us. What do you think, Anabel?"

The Salon Maiden gave her friend and colleague a deadpan look while trying to control her inner thoughts and emotions from Greta's statements of _that_ Trainer.

"… Greta… please shut up."

* * *

_Outside Saffron City, Kanto region_

"Wow, Piplup! Great work!"

"_Piplup! Pip-Piplup!_"

Dawn was impressed the recent combination of moves she and her Piplup have worked on in preparation for the Saffron City Contest. The route in between Cerulean City and Saffron City held precious space to practice in. Kanto Contests were certainly different from Sinnoh Contests, in which she wasn't even required to dress herself up. Nonetheless, she was impressed with the intensity of the competition she received since she came to the Kanto region. Though she could say that she had another motive for traveling to Kanto aside from competing in its Grand Festival.

"Hey, Dee Dee!" a young boyish voice called out, much to Dawn's irritation.

"Will you stop _calling me that_?!" Dawn shouted back. Her friendly rival merely chuckled back to her response.

"Sorry, but it's still too good to pass up, even though you did overcome your Plusle and Minun phobia," Kenny replied with a grin. "Anyway, are you training for the Saffron Contest?"

"You bet! We're not going to lose to you this time around!"

"_Pip-Piplup!_" Piplup chirped in agreement.

"Well, looks like that gang's all here," another familiar voice said.

Both Dawn and Kenny noticed their other rival, Zoey, walking in on them with a friendly wave. It was coincidental enough for the Twinleaf Town Coordinators to meet up with each other in the Kanto region. But the current Sinnoh Top Coordinator made the gathering feel like a crowd.

"Zoey! What brings you by here?" Dawn asked.

"Hey, just because I may be reigning Top Coordinator in Sinnoh doesn't mean that I'm not allowed to become Top Coordinator anywhere else," Zoey replied, amused with Dawn's astonished expression. "I've been training hard to protect my title so far and to give you guys some fair competition."

"You just enjoy humiliating us, don't you?" Kenny shot back jokingly.

"If that's how you feel, you probably need to focus on your weak areas," Zoey said with a smirk of her own. "Anyway, have you guys heard about the news?"

"What news?" Dawn and Kenny asked simultaneously and in surprise.

"I figured it might interest you at first, Dawn, but the Pokémon League has announced that they will be holding the Champions League this year in the coming month at New Island."

"I heard about the Champions League," Kenny interjected. "Barry told me about it and mentioned that his dad competed in the first one ten years ago."

"Hold the phone," Dawn interrupted this time. "What's this 'Champions League' all about? And Palmer got to compete in it?"

"The Champions League is where the best Trainers from around the world, in a sense, are invited and given a chance to battle against Gym Leaders, Elite Four members, and even the Champions themselves from the regions set apart by the Pokémon League," Kenny continued off. "I also heard from Barry recently that his dad's going to compete once more with the rest of the Battle Frontier Brains from Sinnoh along with the Brains from Kanto."

"Trainer qualification is also very steep," Zoey added. "Not many Trainers who simply compete in a League Conference would be admitted. The Pokémon League, with input from Elite Four members, who receive their recommendations from Gym Leaders like Ms. Senior, critically selects them out."

"Who's 'Ms. Senior'?"

"Candice, the Snowpoint City Gym Leader. Long story short, it's something between us as best friends since preschool."

"So that means…," Dawn drew out as the inevitable realization occurred in her mind for the reason Zoey had said would interest her. Her mood became somber.

"There's a chance that he could be seen competing in it," Zoey vocalized her thought. "Even though…"

"You're still bummed out about it, Dawn?" Kenny asked, half-concerned and half-annoyed. "It's not like he was discovered 'dead' or anything like… that…" He stopped halfway upon receiving a very vicious glare from Dawn for his unique choice of words. "Uh… Sorry?"

"Chances are that he found an exclusive and unknown spot to train for the past year," Zoey said in an attempt to console her usually optimistic friend. "On the plus side, with the possibility of seeing him again, there are also other attractions established on New Island such as a few unofficial Pokémon Contests, with the last one being official to go along with the final rounds of the Champions League. Ms. Senior also told me that they also just built up a small branch of the Unova region's Pokéstar Studios there, so we can attempt to make some flicks ourselves. Sounds like fun, doesn't it?"

Dawn gave a brief nod in acknowledgement to Zoey's efforts on cheering her up. No matter what will happen, whether she would ever see the one that helped her begin her journey or not, she resolved to stay strong and firm. After all, it was in her nature to ultimately determine that there is really no need to worry. Speaking of such…

"No need to worry, guys!" Dawn suddenly declared, pulling herself out of her brief depression. "New Island's going to be our next stop after the Saffron City Contest. So let's make the best of this situation and carry on!"

"Right on," Kenny agreed.

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Zoey remarked.

"_Pip-Piplup!_" Piplup cheered on.

* * *

_Striaton City, Unova region_

"Cilan, you really think he'll come back?"

"Hmm? What's got you down now?"

"You, of all people, should know by now! That kid just ditched us to who-knows-where and hasn't even tried to stay in contact with us!"

"Now Iris, you know that's not really true," Cilan said, hands held up gawkily in front in an attempt to calm the hysteria of the Dragon Trainer. It was already bad enough that Iris's current tantrum threw her Axew out of her large hair. "Although Ash's sudden departure did leave a bitter taste in my mouth, he probably needed another ingredient for another powerful battle recipe."

"Maybe, but did he really have to leave us behind just to find a way to become stronger?" Iris replied meekly.

Since their friend's departure over a year ago, Iris and Cilan still traveled around together to explore the world and learn for their respective elements. They originally had plans with their missing friend to tour around the Kanto region and see what made it different from the Unova region aside from the ongoing rumors and opinions. The two of them still went for it, just without Ash. While their journey around Kanto wasn't necessarily in naught, they still felt a missing presence without his personality brightening up their path.

"We're still young and fresh from the kitchen to explore the world outside of Unova," Cilan said, suddenly pulling out a recently torn letter from the side of his backpack. "And I can bet that we'll see him at the Champions League. After all, even the Gym Leaders here, including my brothers, were invited to participate with the Leaders from Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh."

"He'd better be there," Iris grumbled, much to Axew's fear. "Doesn't he know how many of his friends have been _worried sick_ over him the past year?! It sure didn't help that his past companions kept contacting us and demanding us where he went off to. And then the Champions League _happens _to come around the corner to invite all the strongest Pokémon Trainers around to compete in it. Gah! That little kid is _so frustrating_!"

"Maybe's because he wanted to get away from a more troublesome little kid like you," a new, snide voice interrupted, much to Cilan's shock and Iris's increasing aggression. "Smart move, I'd say and I'd definitely commend him for it."

"Nobody asked _you_, Buster!"

"That's 'Dragon Buster Georgia' to you, Dragon Trainee," Georgia responded coolly. "It's been a year and that's how you planned on greeting me?"

"Hey there, Georgia!" Cilan quickly greeted amiably. "What brings you by to the fair and delectable Striaton City?"

"Oh, you know, busting Dragons left and right, _worthwhile_ Dragons at least."

Iris visibly seethed from the emphasis Georgia made, but before she could fire back, Cilan managed to jump in to prevent a miniature war between the two rivals.

"I see, and so your journey led you back here?"

"Obviously. That, and I've been meaning to try out that restaurant you and your brothers are in charge of."

"Well, you certainly have good taste."

"Don't flatter her, Cilan," Iris intervened, taking up a condescending stance. "Anyone with a _rational brain_ can see that you and your brothers serve up some of the best meals anywhere."

"Typical on how the baby Dragoness has to suck up to her superior just to feel good about herself," Georgia responded back with a casual shrug. However, she was careful to note how aggressive Iris has gotten in comparison to previous encounters. _What's her problem anyway?_

"I was only stating truth," Iris countered back calmly with increasing venom. "After all, for you to have grown a rational brain towards Cilan's cooking, you probably had to forego licking the sweat from your feet for nutrition while surviving in the wild."

"Why, you _little_! How dare you!" Georgia hissed, outraged by her rival's successful and rather grotesque insult. "I ought to make _you_ lick the sweat from my feet, you pathetic little loony lizard!"

"Who are you calling 'loony lizard,' ice queen?!" Iris shot back, fired up as well.

"Ladies, please!" Cilan cried out.

The Pokémon Connoisseur had immediately jumped between the two to keep them at safe distance from punching, kicking, or scratching each other. Though the odds of an actual brawl happening between the two young girls were still slim, there was no point in letting it escalate any further than it already had. In a few seconds, Georgia was the first to back off from Cilan from her attempt at attacking Iris.

"You know what? It's not worth it," Georgia muttered.

"Big talk from a little kid," Iris quickly retaliated back.

"Well this 'little kid' doesn't even see you _fit_ to lick the sweat off her feet, so don't even try anymore," Georgia concluded with a victorious smirk. Iris fumed briefly before turning in a huff as well.

"What_ever_ you say."

"Boy, this little concoction of fiery aggression and cold indifference left my stomach upset," Cilan sighed.

"Cilan, what's that in your hand?" Georgia asked offhandedly.

"This? Oh, it's my invitation to compete in the upcoming Champions League. It's the perfect chance for me and my brothers to sample the many spices, flavors, and blends of every competing Pokémon Trainer at New Island, which also happens to be back in Kanto."

"Interesting…"

"How is it 'interesting' to you?" Iris asked. "You're not even qualified to enter, nor do you even care about it."

"I wouldn't jump to such conclusions if I were you. True I'm not eligible to compete in it, but that doesn't mean I can't scope out strong Dragon-type Pokémon and their Trainers competing in it. I'd learn from their examples as well if I were you, Iris."

"She does bring up a flavorful point," Cilan said. "I know that potent Dragon Masters such as Champion Lance, Elite Four Drake, and Gym Leader Clair have been added to this grand feast. And then there's the extra sprinkle of Cynthia and her Garchomp appearing as well. There's no telling what other kinds of Pokémon have been mixed into this already mouthwatering recipe of power and skill."

"I wonder if that means Drayden will be competing as well," Iris pondered, mimicked by Axew with his own thinking pose.

"Either way, I'm checking it out for myself," Georgia openly declared. "That way, I'll have formulated new strategies on taking down strong Dragon-type Pokémon."

"Please, you can't even hope to surpass me at this point."

"Things have been different since you two left for Kanto a year ago, so don't try to think that you're the only one who's improved. If anything, does Dragonite even bother listening to you nowadays or what?"

"Well… there goes my weekend," Cilan sighed, unable to prevent another flaring argument against the two seemingly natural-born rivals. "Maybe Ash _did _have the right idea of withholding himself from this sour moment."

"_Xew Ax-ew…_," Axew sighed alongside the Pokémon Connoisseur.

* * *

_Elsewhere…_

"_Pidgeo! Pidgeo-toh!_"

The shrill, powerful cry of a Pidgeot pierced through the air as it flew at an incredible rate towards the treacherous Mt. Silver. Flying over the bustling Silver Town at its pace, it climbed up altitude by altitude. It maintained a steady climb, even as the temperature around it started to drop and the air around it became thinner. Human civilization had already ceased after passing the line. It had passed a small area of evergreen trees planted on the higher levels, to the point where snow had become a prominent element in place of the usual sunshine for this season.

The Pidgeot didn't bat an eye, but kept its course towards the highest peak. Not even the oncoming Hail stones could prevent it from reaching its desired destination. The Bird Pokémon saw a being standing at the top, covered completely in a large brown cloak and hood as a means to keep warm, though that never stopped the person in the past in keeping warm. Why now to wear that silly cloth, the Bird Pokémon knew not. Regardless, the Pidgeot flew over the covered individual and dropped a letter it had been carrying in its beak to him. The person extended a quick hand to snatch the letter once it reached his level. The Pidgeot had then flown down the peak, obviously not interested in staying in the cold longer than it desired.

The individual still had the hand held out, gazing steely from underneath the large hood upon the rather peculiar letter he received. With a free hand, he slightly lifted the tip of the hood for a better look, a glaring dark eye contrasting against the falling white snow and hail around him.

He was the only human within miles upon miles on the dreadful peak he chose to reside on. As far as anyone was concerned at this point, he considered himself a nonentity. A nobody, essentially, for the past year since his decision to break free and do what he was supposed to do. With swift examination of the letter just from its cover, it became obvious to him that it's all about to change, starting in the next month and at a place he last visited almost over seven years ago.

He showed no weakness in regards to battling the strongest currently in the world, even hoping to find the Trainers that had knocked him out of past Conferences. If anything, he was ready for a return… if he hadn't overlooked one little detail:

Having been declared MIA for about a year with no attempt to reaching out to society, nor having much human contact at all while at Mt. Silver, how was he going to face the inevitable reunion of past faces once close to him?

"… … … … … … …"

Either he had turned a cold shoulder to them completely or was completely speechless over handling the prospect itself, only time will tell.

* * *

**Yep, as you may or may not have already guessed, I gave our main star the rather played-out introduction of the great Master Red on Mt. Silver. If he wants to become a Pokémon Master, then he might as well follow the path of one preceded by his game counterpart, at least that's what I'm going on anyway. Ah, yes, the classic "Red Approach" for our Ash. Not the most original of ideas, but if it isn't broken, don't fix it. Don't worry though, he won't be **_**too**_** overpowered, but just enough to last against and possibly triumph over an Elite Four member at this moment of time. **

**Speaking of which, he will have three additional new Pokémon at this point, two having been already decided by me and the third slot left to suggestions. As for his backstory on why he's been in Mt. Silver, it'll come piece by piece as I don't intend on having it take up much space here. I might as well make it a prequel if you want to know what happened to him (my take on Ash upon concluding the Decolora Archipelago), but I'll give enough story for it as we progress forward. **

**I also might as well include on how Dawn, Iris, and Cilan have been doing since they **_**were**_** Ash's traveling companions, aside from Misty, Brock, May, and Max. Though I detest how the anime portrayed Iris, some things are necessary in order to expand the story, aka the eventual reunion with Ash and all of his companions and other significant characters at the tournament.**

**And I also made Anabel and Lucian siblings as many others here have done, just like my brother had started, as far as I know. I know in canon that they most likely have never met or are actually related, but such a barrier has been destroyed thanks to fan fiction. I'm just going to keep it like that, just to honor my brother and give some character development for Anabel because let's face it. The Anabel from canon barely gives any real depth on her personality aside from outside emotions and behavior.**

**One more thing: Don't get too used to my somewhat frequent updates. I've been lucky so far…**

**Well, it's time to measure up how my writing skills are. Please review! **

**L-ater!**


	4. To New Island! The Gathering! Part I

**Well, I was bound to "take" a lot of time at updating at some point in the future. Anyway, I'll save the more important announcements and general author's notes at the end since many of you have been waiting for the eventual gathering and reunion. So please go on and read to the end.**

* * *

_One Quick Month Later…_

Time flew by since the announcement of the Champions League throughout the five main regions under the Pokémon League. Emotions were high. Tension was breaking down others if not building up upon them. Preparations and business arrangements of traveling were being made. And of course, there was a good majority of Pokémon Trainers that strictly trained and prepared their Pokémon for this grand event making history. Now that the time had passed, the gathering of the elite had begun this day from the four corners of the world to New Island. Though the actual festivities won't being until later in the young summer evening, many trips were planned and booked for the morning and afternoon.

No doubt that registration's going to be busy for the entire day…

The morning itself was bright and cheery as to correspond to the excitement filling the air around every participating Pokémon Trainer there was. It was still hours before noon could even arrive and several trips were being made to New Island. A large and majestic ship was the one of the first to approach the docking destination, disregarding a couple of aerial crafts flying towards the heart of the island.

"_Attention, faithful passengers!_" the captain's voice via ship intercom chimed in. "_We will be docking at our final destination, New Island, within ten minutes. Please gather all your belongings before departing off this fine vessel. We will not be held responsible for any item that gets left behind. Thank you for sailing with us across the seas of Kanto upon the St. Jeanne! We hope that you can join us again on another trip some day!_"

The passengers traveled down the ramp in a very orderly fashion. One would have to take into account that the majority of passengers happened to be the Kanto and Johto Gym Leaders, accompanied by the Frontier Brains of Kanto and Sinnoh. The minority composed of friends and any family members of the Leaders. Upon setting foot upon New Island, the Gym Leaders animatedly chatted amongst each other as a result of pent-up excitement from their overseas traveling while heading off towards registration at the main Pokémon Center.

"Brock, I never imagined coming to a place like this," Misty remarked. "It's awesome that we're together again like this. It's so nostalgic…"

They all took in the sights and sounds that the Pokémon League constructed upon this natural green island. It was large enough to accommodate not only a number of battle arenas for the tournament, but several other buildings and attractions for every Pokémon fan out there, ranging from simple carnival games up to miniature Pokémon Contests to a branch of the Unova Pokéstar Studios.

"It's weird, but don't you feel like we've been here before?" Brock asked. Misty gave him a skeptic look. "I mean, we're obviously attending to something pretty big, but I can't help but think that we were once part of it the first time we traveled around Kanto together years ago."

"I _think_ I would remember a place like this. Besides, back then the closest we were to New Island was at Old Shore Wharf and this place was nothing but greenery. Don't you even remember?"

"Thing is that I don't."

"Ah, forget it," Misty muttered impatiently before abruptly walking off to join up with the Kanto Gym Leaders that left ahead. "I probably could get Sabrina to help with your memory loss…"

"O-kay then…"

"Brock, let's catch up to them," Forrest suggested, tugging his older brother by the arm and pulled him along to the registration building.

The two Gym Leaders and Pokémon Doctor went along their way behind the noticeable group of Kanto and Johto Gym Leaders, along with a few early bird Pokémon Trainers that booked their trip for that time slot. The last group to descend off of the St. Jeanne ship was that of Scott and the Frontier Brains.

"What do y'all think about this place?" Scott spoke out as to stir some liveliness into his group. "Doesn't this make you want to battle your hearts out?"

"You bet!" Greta shouted.

"Excellent. Now first, let's lay down a couple of ground rules."

The various Frontier Brains exchanged quick looks while the more outspoken ones openly groaned at the suggested notion.

"You'd think we were all back at Beginner Trainer School or something," Noland said.

"Relax, it's not what you all thinking and groaning about," Scott chuckled. "They're nothing more than simple suggestions in making your time here in New Island a blast."

"Whatever!" Greta quickly exclaimed. "Just give me a good ol' fashioned hot-blooded battle of fists and you'd have one happy gal Brain on your team."

"It's good to see the passion for battling in all of you. Anyway, you do remember the primary mission here is to make a good impression for Trainers and the Pokémon League, right?"

"Right!" all twelve Frontier Brain agreed back.

"I best recommend that instead of staying together as the intimidating group of strong Trainers as you all are, go on and branch out, meet different people, befriend them, and scout for some potentials."

"Suffice to say, go about our usual business, isn't that right?" Thorton surmised.

"Heh heh, well it looks like you don't need me to spout off any more hot air then," Scott said. "With that being made known, once y'all are registered at the Pokémon Center, you're free to enjoy New Island to your heart's content. Just be wise in your dealings, ya hear?"

"Got it!" the Frontier Brains responded before traveling on in the direction of the Kanto and Johto Gym Leaders.

* * *

"_Attention, passengers! Attention! We will be momentarily docking in Ascorbia Island of the Orange Archipelago to receive passengers from the SS Sinjoh in destination to New Island, Kanto. We estimate to arrive there by noon. If Ascorbia Island is your stop, please feel free to depart and thank you for traveling with us in the SS Uno!_"

"Can't we just get to New Island already and not keep making these stops?"

"Cranky because we didn't get our beauty sleep last night?"

"Watch it, Iris. Nobody asked you."

"Ladies, can't we please settle this like rational, civilized… eh…"

Cilan couldn't get the two warring girls to behave themselves, even though at this stage, compared to previous standoffs, was rather tame. In one way, Iris and Georgia could be viewed at completely opposite sides of the ship, eyeing each other down to the bone. While Georgia maintained an indifferent, yet comical stare with the occasional twitch from her left eye, Iris could be described as practically on fire with her Axew barely holding back her aggression.

"The fact is that I was willing to get up early in the morning to catch a ride to Kanto for this," Iris hissed.

"Oh, _sure_," Georgia retorted, rolling her eyes. "You seemed 'ready' with Cilan carrying your unconscious body up the ramp at three in the morning."

"Why are you even here in the first place?" Iris inquired as civilly as she could.

"I could ask you the same thing, you know."

"Hey, Cilan and I are looking for Ash to give him a piece of our minds for leaving us so suddenly after the Decolora Archipelago and there's no way he'd miss out on the Champions League. You, on the other hand, have no business with anyone."

"Forgetful, aren't we?" Georgia scoffed. "I told you last month that the Champions League has caught my interest with all these powerful Dragon Masters coming to compete in it. And like it or not, I'm here to make sure that you also learn from the best so that when I beat you for real that my victory over you _will_ have meaning."

"Like I need _your_ help?!"

"Like it or not!"

At an instant, the distance between the two fiery rivals had been erased and they were practically forcing each other forehead by forehead as to back up their threats. Cilan wasn't sure whether to stop the madness once and for all to preserve the peace for the remainder of the trip or to let them continue so that they might actually learn something from their rivalry. Before he could even do something about it, he heard footsteps approaching his small group, as well as a new unrecognizable, rather deep voice taking action on his behalf.

"Will you two knock it off?" the young man berated rather harshly to Georgia and Iris. They and Cilan were surprised by the callousness of his tone. "There are actual competitors here trying to maintain their focus for the Champions League. The fact that you two aren't even competing in the tournament isn't being fair to the rest of us."

"Well, who are you to tell us off like that?" Georgia demanded. "Are you a Dragon Master?"

"He looks more like a little kid with an attitude," Iris added snidely, much to the stranger's growing annoyance.

"You mentioned something about Ash," he brought up, catching their interest upon saying the name. "Are you expecting him to show up at the Champions League?"

"He'd better! Why else would we be going back to Kanto in the first place?"

"Uh, Iris?" Cilan spoke up. "My brothers and I are competing in it as well. Speaking of which, I'd better see if they're still at our room."

"You're not going anywhere yet, Cilan," Iris warned; Cilan stood in place and sighed again, unable to flee when he had the chance.

"I'm actually feeling sorry for Ash for putting up with you the whole time in Unova," Georgia commented.

"No one asked you, Buster."

"It's 'Dragon Buster.' Get it right!"

"Hey, you two better behave yourselves," the strange young man interrupted, scowling in irritation. "I didn't come up here for a show. I plan to win and become the best out of everyone in the tournament, so I'd appreciate it if you two would quit your shouting match right now."

"Yeah? What are you going to do about it?" Georgia taunted.

"That attitude of yours doesn't scare me," Iris added in before whispering an audible extra comment. "I've seen Georgia in the mornings anyway."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!"

"You're both pathetic and not worth my time," he sighed before turning his back to them and walking off.

"Never before have I experienced a sharp, bold taste, up front and powerful, yet able to take what others throw at him and use their ingredients for his own," Cilan commented. "I didn't see him the first time we boarded the SS Uno, so he must have been on the SS Sinjoh before the transfer." He took a risk at glancing at Iris and Georgia, noticing how both were still left speechless from their encounter with that young man.

"Well… Oh yeah?!" Iris shouted out in futility. "You're still a little kid, you punk!"

"Iris, he's gone," Georgia sighed before readapting her fierce demeanor. "But he is right about one thing."

"What?" Iris asked. Georgia's smirk grew comically wide.

"You _are_ pathetic."

"… "

"Ha!"

"… A little kid like you calling me 'pathetic' is pathetic itself."

"…"

"…"

"… … _What?!_"

"Down the boulevard of broken recipes I go… again," Cilan sighed as the SS Uno had set sailed once more, this time to New Island. Somewhat fortunately for him, the signaling foghorn had censored out the resuming argument between the Dragon Buster and Dragon Trainer.

"_Ax-Ax-ew_," Axew concurred sadly.

* * *

Twelve o'clock noon came around and the next batch of ships delivering the Champions League participants and random tourists that happened to be huge Pokémon fans prepared to dock. Fortunately, the port was built wide and large enough to accommodate for the entering population. The ship that arrived first had already released its passengers; they pertained of residents of the Hoenn region as the said region's Gym Leaders were mixed in along with different people.

"Dad, we finally made it!" May exclaimed as the whole family descended the ramp.

"You're going to be so awesome!" Max pitched in. "They'll name _you_ the next Champion Master for sure!"

"Thanks, kids," Norman chuckled sheepishly.

"It's a good thing Kenny was willing to watch over the Petalburg Gym while we're attending the opening ceremonies," Caroline said. "Still, it would have been considerate to bring him along with us."

"Mom, he insisted on taking care of the Gym while Dad's out here competing in the tournament," Max said. "Besides, the opening ceremony will be broadcasted worldwide and he knows when to tune in if he wants to see Dad in action."

"Speaking of action, I'd better head to the Pokémon Center and check in, Gym Leader privilege after all," Norman announced. "You guys are free to explore New Island until tonight. Just don't get lost."

"I think I'll join you, honey," Caroline said, taking an arm of her husband as they walked ahead, leaving behind May and Max to do as they pleased.

"I wonder where the other ship next to ours came from," May said aloud.

"That's the SS Uno of the Unova region," Max clarified. "I'll bet we'll see a lot of new Pokémon native only to that region. It'll be so cool."

"Yeah! I can't wait−Ack!"

"May! It's so great to see you again!" a cheerful voice cried out.

"_Piplup-Pip!_"

"May, who's that?" Max inquired of the bubbly, blue-haired girl that snuck from behind to tackle and hug his older sister. "And is that a Piplup? That's so cool!"

"Dawn!" May cried out as well, turning around to give the younger Coordinator a hug. "It's been so long! How've you been?"

Dawn broke out of the hug with a great big smile on her youthful face. She beckoned the siblings to follow her down the dock, closer to where the SS Uno was anchored at. It had started with her sharing some successes competing in the Kanto Contests, including her most recent victory at the Saffron City Contest and showing off her Ribbon to her role model. She also briefly mentioned that Zoey and Kenny, her rivals, came to New Island with her after the Saffron Contest to check out the attractions.

"So you're the Coordinator my sister mentioned traveling with Ash in Sinnoh," Max said, forming a sneaky grin. "Does that mean you're the one who whipped my sister in the Wallace Cup then?"

"Max, behave yourself!" May exclaimed, lightly bopping her brother on the head.

"No need to worry, it's all in the past now," Dawn said to ease the brief tension before settling into a light somber mood. "Though speaking of the Trainer, I was hoping to find him here. I'm sure you guys have heard the stories going around after he competed in the Unova Vertress Conference."

May and Max then shared Dawn's mood, exchanging a look between each other before facing the Twinleaf Town Coordinator. Despite having the liberty of being able to say his name in spite of a year of his losing contact with the world, it was still a sensitive topic to discuss.

"I've heard rumors that he was engaged in something dangerous, and with Lance the Champion as part of a recent one," May admitted. "Don't know where exactly, though, but then if I did know, we wouldn't be worried about where he is now, right?"

"I heard of a tale that he traveled to a faraway desert region with a maiden and a power-obsessed rival to stop a criminal organization hell-bent on ruling the world with corrupted Pokémon," Max said.

"Please, that story's way past overdue," Dawn waved off. "If anything, I think he's been training hard for a moment like this."

"Out of all the ridiculous theories you all came up with, I have to say that the last is the most logical of them all," a rough, deep voice spoke up.

"That voice… Paul!" Dawn exclaimed, turning around and discovering the Veilstone City Trainer standing a few feet away from the trio with hands in his pockets. "I should've expected you coming to compete in the Champions League."

"Of course, now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to register for the tournament," Paul said as he walked past the group. "One more thing. If you happen to see him wandering around, tell him that I'm looking forward to a rematch in the later rounds."

"You got it!" Dawn declared back with a smile, pleased with his more pleasant demeanor as he even took the courtesy of sending a hand back to her as he went off to the Pokémon Center.

"Hey, Dawn, who was that exactly?" May asked.

"I've seen him before," Max said. "I've seen several Conferences on TV where Paul competed at, especially his match with Ash in the Lily of the Valley Conference over two years ago. He's certainly a piece of work, alright. At least, Ash managed to beat him before losing humiliatingly to Tobias."

"Now Max, what have I said before about respect?" May reprimanded, gently tugging on his ear.

"May, quit it!"

"Guys, calm down," Dawn said, but before she could continue, someone decided to wrap their arms around her waist. "Wha…?"

"Dawn! Remember me?" a familiar, excited voice chirped up.

Dawn looked back to see bushy purple hair with an Axew popping out from the top waving a hello. She also noticed two more familiar faces standing from behind along with two unfamiliar faces; the former two faces from the Unova region when she traveled there briefly. With a cheery grin, she pulled the hugger upright and clasped her hands.

"Iris! You too?"

"The gang's all here!" Iris declared.

"Hey, Iris, we're going to check in for the tournament," Cilan announced as Chili and Cress started to walk ahead. "We'll meet up with you guys at the Pokémon Center."

"Sounds great, Cilan! Good luck!"

"Fine and dandy," Georgia muttered, approaching the group composed of the Dragon Trainer, two Coordinators, and a young regular Trainer. "Dawn, was it?"

"Yeah?"

"That guy with purple hair and dark eyes that walked past you three, do you know him?"

"Yeah, he used to be Ash's rival in Sinnoh," Dawn explained.

"What? He was Ash's rival?!" Iris repeated incredulously. "That guy was rude to us on the ride here. He's like a meaner version of Trip or something."

"We were creating a commotion with our petty fights, which was good enough of a reason that we were asking for it," Georgia mentioned.

"Oh…"

"Come on, let's head to the Pokémon Center and we'll explain along the way," Dawn suggested with a smile.

The group of somewhat unlikely individuals traveling together went on. However, they didn't notice that there was a particular brunette Coordinator missing in their group as she was still caught up with the sights and sounds that New Island had to offer. Right until she turned around and noticed that everyone she knew left, May was frantically searching for where they had gone off to. Involuntarily picking a direction, she ran forth not knowing where exactly she was heading to as long as she found her friends and brother.

_*Crash!_

"Aah! Oh, geez! I'm so sorry!" May cried, not even opening her eyes out of embarrassment of her collision against another person.

She then felt a hand grab onto her right wrist and pulled her back onto her feet. When the Petalburg City Coordinator did open her eyes, she was greeted with a sight of a young man who was a few inches taller than her, garbed in a sleeveless red vest with white outlines on top of a black short-sleeve shirt. His eyes were mysteriously concealed in shadow by the rim of his red cap. She quickly felt intimidated for some reason, possibly by his aura alone, and didn't want to deal with this awkward situation any longer than necessary.

"I'm sorry, but I lost my friends and brother and I don't know where they went off to," May confessed, looking down to her feet. The stranger then pointed to the direction of the Pokémon Center, giving the green-bandanna wearing young girl where they have possibly gone to. "Thanks, mister!"

The young man watched her run off into the heart of the island. He glanced behind him to where a Pikachu was lying on his back, trying to wake himself up after falling from something.

"_Pii,_" the Pikachu groaned, looking to where the girl that knocked him off of his spot ran off to. "_Pika… Pikapi!_" The Pikachu glanced up to his Trainer, who only shook his head in response as to signify that now wasn't the time. "_Pii…_"

The Pikachu leapt back up to his spot on the Trainer's shoulder. The Trainer himself had just arrived on New Island and as of yet hadn't registered for the Champions League. But the time will come when the truth will be revealed to the world that he is making his revival and becomes crowned a Master.

"… …"

* * *

**I decided to break this into two parts, mainly because I've gotten impatient with myself and to keep you readers on your toes and give you all ideas on what would happen next. The gathering has begun and while I could have condensed both the gathering and the registration together, I felt it would have been more evenly spaced out as so. I apologize for the tease, but I hope the humor and outside references made up for it.**

**Now then, as for other announcements, I'm sure most of you have heard about this year's E3. For one, there's that new Pokémon type, the "dreaded" Fairy-type that trumps Dragon-types, possibly another way for Georgia to beat Iris, but who knows. Personally, I'm keeping tabs on **_**Super Smash Bros. for Wii U/Nintendo 3DS**_**. So I'm also updating my profile with characters as they'll be revealed from the newly restored **_**Smash Bros.**_** website. I think that the first new trio of fighters will be interesting to look forward to, no doubt the fans are having fun drawing them out in art and in fiction. So go ahead and check out my profile for news and other things about me that I've updated.**

**And as always…**

**It's time to measure up how my writing skills are. Please review!**

**L-ater!**

**PS: Happy Father's Day!**


	5. To New Island! The Registration! Part II

**It's nice to see the previous chapter getting some love, noticeably a lot of it in fact now that the main star has come. Anyway, I've been looking over the previous reviews and I felt prompted to make some responses public and addressed first here for your information. **

**So someone asked about Ash's Unova rivals. Considering that it was his most recent major journey until this storyline, there won't be much to talk about them. However, given the qualifications of their performance from the Vertress Conference and the year time skip in which anything could happen, only time will tell if they "have met" the regulations of the Champions League, though I will say that Virgil, Cameron, and Stephen (whoops… **_**Stephan**_**) have a good chance of appearing. The jury's still out on Bianca (who was seen working in Professor Juniper's lab in the Let's Join Hands ending and would have a probable occupation becoming such in the future, just like her game counterpart) and Trip (considering he was Top 128 and did dislike "the boonies" of Kanto, among other things…), only because I have no real need for them right now, but that won't mean that they'd be entirely shunned from the fic. Plus, there are still the rivals from the past that I'd see making an appearance, Paul being one example.**

**The main purpose for this story so far was to focus on the growths of the main characters featured and some particular ones I feel inclined to expound upon, meaning no fancy aura tricks or a secret criminal organization disrupting the tournament to conquer the world. I know there's a lot of plot and character (re)building, but I promise to make up for the lack of action with some great battling (hopefully…). **

**And now, we move finally to the topic of Ash himself. Why I chose a year for him? So much can happen in a year. If I had gone to two or more, I feel like I'd be beating the Ponyta dead, in a sense. It'll all be explained later in the plot. As for his newly acquired Pokémon that have yet to be revealed, I'm personally impartial at this point of him having a legendary Pokémon. For a pro, it would show that he's mastered training his Pokémon and has gone up a step. But for a con, it'd feel like cheapening his team after a straight year of training the Pokémon he already has on him. Plus, the legendary Pokémon is Tobias's thing, who will make a future appearance.**

**Anyway, thanks for the reviews and I hope these comments have answered your questions so far. If not, just read through this chapter until you reach the review button if you have any more to say to me. **

**Have fun now!**

* * *

_Where are they?_ May thought, urgently running down the path the mysterious young man pointed her to. The grand Pokémon Center in front of the larger main stadium for the tournament was dead ahead. _Wow, the line looks very long._

True to her inner thought, the line of participating Pokémon Trainers managed to extend a good distance past the front entrance of the Pokémon Center. Graciously maneuvering through the growing line while muttering hasty pardons, the Petalburg City Coordinator managed to slip inside the building. Apparently the extended line was somewhat of an understatement as she viewed how the line from outside had branched off into five more distinctive branches, all leading into a station in charge by five Nurse Joys. However, the line seemed to be moving smoothly as the five Pokémon Nurses were quite efficient in handling each Trainer's registration.

"May, over here!" Max called out. The brunette Coordinator caught the direction of the voice of her younger brother and discovered her little group sitting in the waiting area with a couple more faces sitting with them.

"Where've you been?" Dawn asked as May reached them. "We got worried when we noticed you were gone."

"Which was why the first place we thought you'd try to look for us was at the Pokémon Center," Max continued with a wide grin.

"Thanks for waiting up, gang," May said with a sheepish giggle. "New Island was certainly something that I couldn't pay attention to anything else."

"Apparently you've also overlooked us as well," a young, familiar feminine voice spoke up playfully.

"Yeah, well−Misty?! And Brock?!"

"Nice of you to finally notice us, May," the young Pokémon Doctor chuckled as Misty briefly got up to hug her. "We were just getting to know more of Ash's friends from the Unova region. Have you had a chance to greet them yet?"

"Not formally, no," May admitted, to which two of the aforementioned stood up from their seats and approached her.

"So you're May, Ash's friend from the Hoenn region," the tan-skinned girl with large dark-purple hair began, extended out a friendly hand for May to shake. "I'm Iris from the Village of Dragons." Something began stirring in Iris's hair.

"_Ax Axew!_" Axew greeted, instantaneously emerging out of her hair.

"And this is my partner-in-crime, Axew."

"And I'm the one and only Cilan of Striaton City, A-Class Pokémon Connoisseur at your service," the taller green-haired man said with a bow of flair. "I'm also one of three tough Gym Leaders with my brothers."

"Incredible," May commented after shaking Cilan's hand. "It's so awesome that you guys were Ash's companions from Unova." From the corner of her eye, she noticed the teenaged girl with the puffy cap that was with them from the start sitting at a far corner, glancing out of the window in boredom. "Hey, wasn't she with you guys on the ship?"

"Doesn't mean she's one of us," Iris interrupted haughtily. "She just 'happened' to be on the same ship as we were on the way to Kanto."

"Now, Iris, don't be like that," Cilan said. "Georgia has the same right being here as we do."

"Don't try sugarcoating it any other way, Connoisseur," Georgia spoke up, leaning back on her seat casually. "Personally, a Dragon Buster as I wouldn't be caught dead associating with those close to a Dragon Master. However…" She gave a brief leer towards Iris. "I'm willing to be lenient for you guys since she's not a real Dragon Master yet."

"Ha, such lame excuses can only be thought up by a little kid," Iris scoffed off.

"Really now, that same old song and dance, it only shows how much you _haven't_ grown since our last real battle."

"As if being your same indecisive self is any different than how I am."

"Indecisive?! What do you mean 'indecisive'?"

"Oh, I don't know… Like… *ahem* 'I-I mean, it's not like I consider you anyone s-special to me or anything like that. That's not the reason why I'm helping y-you.' or 'Why are you with that super cool and totally awesome Dragon Master, Ash−N-Not that I care about you'."

"Come on! I do _not_ sound like that, nor did I ever say such things!" Georgia's face faintly blushed red.

"Denial much?"

"More like dealing with a delusional little girl that's scared of a little snowflake glittering in fairy dust."

"What was that?!"

_Speaking of same old, same old,_ Cilan thought as he and the whole group, save it for those two, fell into an awkward silence and each one had the metaphorical drop of sweat sliding down their heads.

_Those two are so childish, _Misty thought, irritated with the act.

_Rivalries… they're as old as time itself, _Brock thought with nostalgia warming his senses.

_This isn't going to end well,_ May thought worriedly.

_This… is interesting,_ Max thought, struggling not to grin at the anticipated fight.

_Their fights are scarier than Ash and Paul's former rivalry,_ Dawn thought in amazement.

_This has happened in every chapter so far, it's getting older than ripened vintage wine,_ Cilan thought with an additional mental sigh.

* * *

_At the same time…_

"Thank you for registering for the Champions League New Island Conference," Nurse Joy said with her inherent warm smile present on her face. "Good luck in all your battles!"

"Thanks a lot, Nurse Joy!" the departing Trainer replied, quickly brushing past the next Trainer on line to register.

Speaking of said Trainer, he calmly took his place at the center counter. He came out of the line on the farthest left from the entrance, the closest to the lingering area. While he prepared for his own registration into the tournament, the Pikachu on his shoulder secretly observed the minor commotion coming from the nearby waiting area, the one between two familiar warring young girls.

"Welcome to the New Island Pokémon Center," Nurse Joy began. "Are you here to register for the Champions League?"

"…" the Trainer gave an affirmative nod before showing the kind Nurse a large and rather worn-out looking red Pokédex, as well as his mailed invitation for additional backup.

"Interesting Pokédex model you have there," Nurse Joy commented before inserting the encyclopedic device into her computer. "Oh! Well this is interesting."

"…?"

"Looks like you haven't updated your Trainer ID photo for quite a while now, considering that you look so much different now than this picture," Nurse Joy explained, "but that shouldn't be too much of a problem. This happens often. All you have to do is go down the hallway on my left and you'll find the photo staff taking new photo ID pictures for the competing Trainers. However, given the busy schedules of everyone here and the amount of Pokémon Trainers updating their identifications, your new photo won't be shown on the tournament board until after the first preliminary round. It won't be too long, I promise. Other than that, you're all set to battle now."

"… Mmm," the Trainer gave a short grunt before responding to the Nurse's condolence with a smile.

"Thank you for understanding… and welcome back, Ash."

"… … … Thank you… … Nurse Joy," Ash spoke in a low voice.

Though his eyes were still concealed under both the rim of his cap and its casted shadow, Nurse Joy was able to see his true self shining out in gratitude for the opportunity to take this great tournament by storm. After all, many a Nurse Joy has dealt with all kinds of Pokémon Trainers, and the changes that the Pallet Town Trainer had gone through were of no exception. This Nurse Joy was already well-acquainted with him since he did help her protect the Pokémon of her Pokémon Center in Viridian City when Team Rocket had attacked seven years ago with a Pikachu that recovered from an awful ordeal.

"By the way, there were some young people that were asking me and the other Nurses for you," Nurse Joy said, pointing to the waiting area. "They're worried about you. Do you want to make yourself known to them?"

"…" Ash shook his head with a frown, tugging his cap down further upon his face. "… I can't face them… … Not yet…"

"Oh, dear, I'm sorry to hear. Actually, it's not just them that were asking for you. A couple more Trainers asked me if you had registered, the most recent one being a young lady roughly your age. I believe she was from the Ba−."

"…" Ash held a hand up, signaling for her to stop. "… … Again… thank you…"

This time, he gave another brief nod before heading off to the hall she mentioned early to update his current photo identification. He slid through the other four lines with ease and went along without much problem, not before taking in a very quick observation of a certain former rival of his staring intently at him. As part of the new changes he adapted within his year of training, he didn't attempt to react unless he was actually confronted. However, the staring Trainer didn't brother getting up from his seat and instead allowed him go to renew his photo identification without any trouble.

* * *

_Back with the group of former companions…_

"… Well, we can't complain now that it's stopped," Brock said.

"But it's not really the best alternative in calming those two down," May continued.

"You still have to admit, that girl's got style," Max remarked.

They, along with Dawn and Cilan, still stared upon the inert bodies of Iris and Georgia lying on the waiting room carpet, both sporting comically large bumps on the tops of their heads, Georgia's forming underneath her cap. Iris's Axew was cowering behind a chair while waiting for his Trainer to wake up.

"Misty, I understand that they were getting out of hand, but did you really have to use your mallet of doom on them?" Dawn asked.

"Sorry about that, I guess I did go a bit overboard on them," Misty said with an uncomfortable giggle, mock pounding her head. "Some old habits die hard."

"Quite the power-packed blend of extreme tanginess," Cilan commented. "With all the refreshing coolness of a typical Water-type Pokémon Trainer with the spicy fury of a Fire-type, that's quite a fusion of flavors that takes true risk and bravery to handle."

While the group still watched over Iris and Georgia and conversed about Misty's handiwork on them, Brock felt the impression to look into the decreasing crowd of Trainers in front of registry for the tournament. Out of all the unfamiliar faces, one particular girl with lilac hair stood out wandering about. It was only when she glanced at his direction that she didn't look as lost as before.

"Brock, hey!" she waved and went to the group.

"Anabel, it's great to see you again," Brock greeted back. The others took notice of the approaching Salon Maiden as she quickly shook Brock's hand. May suddenly squealed and leapt onto her for a big hug, much to Anabel's initial shock.

"Anabel! You're here!" May cheered.

"Nice to see you again as well, May," Anabel said with a gentle laugh. "And Max and… a bunch of other people I don't know. My apologies."

"They were all Ash's traveling companions at different times aside from us," Max explained.

The group had then warmly greeted Anabel and had gone over the individual introductions, from learning who was competing in the Champions League to learning more about how the Battle Frontier was allowed by the Pokémon League to promote their facilities and challenges to other competing Trainers. Iris and Georgia had woken up from the ground, much to Anabel's further confusion on why they were "sleeping" on the floor in the first place. When she attempted to inquire about their incident, Misty was quick to change topic. And of course, the inevitable topic of the group's main purpose being together was to emerge as they talked.

"So, seeing all of you guys all together and here at New Island to either compete or watch, where's Ash?" Anabel asked, to which she was met with exchanging glances of uncertainty and sadness.

"You see, some of us asked the Nurse Joys as we first arrived in the Pokémon Center if he had registered for the tournament," Brock began.

"But we all received the same answer," Misty continued.

"No one by that name had registered so far," Cilan said. "But Nurse Joy did say that he was on the invited list of eligible Trainers for the Champions League."

"That's really too bad," Anabel commented with a sad smile. "I was actually looking forward to seeing him as I had a feeling he'd be in a place like this."

"Your emotions aren't too far off, as much as I hate to admit," a new voice spoke up, originating behind Anabel's seat. She and the others glanced at their new visitor.

"Paul!" Dawn yelled.

"Must you announce my appearance like that every time?" Paul inquired.

"You look familiar," Anabel intervened, taking a thorough scan of the Veilstone City Trainer. "Have we met before?"

"No," Paul said, not even looking at the Salon Maiden. "But you have met my brother, Reggie, and battled him before."

"Yes, it's coming back to me now. Reggie was one of the first competitors of the Battle Frontier and one of the first Trainers to challenge me when I joined and became in charge of the Battle Tower."

"Fascinating," Paul brushed off, having something else in mind to share with the group. "Anyway, the one you're looking for, he's not too far off from you. He barely finished registering for the competition before going about his own business."

"What?!" the younger half of the group shouted, jumping to their feet.

"Why didn't you stop him?" Misty asked.

"We're all worried about that kid, he didn't even bother staying in contact with any of us for over a year now," Iris added.

"What he does is none of my business," Paul replied simply with a shrug.

"He's right, you know," a new calm voice intervened. "You can't take out your frustration on a bystander, no matter how much you rationalize your anger when you yourselves know of the greater picture behind."

The whole group then peered on the side opposite from Paul to a chair, whose back was to them. Misty and Brock stood up, having been the only ones from the group to recognize that even tone.

"Sabrina! I-We… didn't see you back t-there," Misty stuttered from astonishment of not noticing the presence of the Saffron City Gym Leader casually sitting on the cushy chair, one leg overlapping the other with an open novel face down on her lap.

"Let's just say that we've been taking stealth lessons from Janine," Sabrina said with a hint of a smirk.

"Um, 'we've'?" Dawn repeated. Her answer, whether she realized it or not, came in the form of someone poking her on the shoulder. "May, not now."

"B-But I'm o-over here," May responded, fear having filled her voice for some reason. Dawn picked up on the feeling and cautiously turned around, only to be met with… nothing?

"H-Huh?"

"Dawn…"

"Stop messing with me!" Dawn scolded, abruptly giving a huff and turning face into a very strange face. "Ah…"

"_Hau-Hau-Hau!_"

"EEK!" Dawn squealed loudly, catching the attention of nearly everyone in the Pokémon Center. Fortunately for her, Brock had already thought ahead and caught her as she tripped backwards from her sudden fright.

"You gave the same exact reaction as Erika did when Haunter snuck up on her last month," Sabrina stated plainly.

"That's not even funny!"

"Don't worry, Dawn," Anabel said, walking up to Haunter. "This one's really friendly and playful. I can tell that it even dislikes fighting and contention."

"Is that your Haunter, Sabrina?" Max asked.

"By a technicality, I never caught it," Sabrina explained. "But we enjoy each other's company and Haunter makes me laugh."

"_Hau-ta Haun-ta,_" Haunter agreed.

"Funny thing is that Ash needed Haunter's help in his Gym Battle against Sabrina," Misty brought up. "Although, he did manage to win in a manner more unconventional than his usual tactics."

"Somehow I know what you're talking about," Paul said, attempting to hide a smirk of amusement.

"What was Ash's battle recipe back then?" Cilan asked.

"He actually made Sabrina laugh herself into defeat," Brock stepped in. Everyone, save it for Misty and Paul, looked at the Doctor with baffled expressions.

"… You're joking," Iris stated.

"Not joking."

Laughter had then ensued from the disbelievers. Brock, Misty, and Sabrina exchanged glances and smiled from the memory, despite the former two having been primary victims turned into dolls back then. At least now they had a good laugh about it and didn't hold it against the Saffron City Gym Leader for her past sins. Anabel was relatively calm and merely smiled along the mirth. Paul kept a smirk to himself.

"Should've figured he would pull a stunt like that just to win," Paul commented. "The only thing more pathetic than defeat by laughter is seeing how much of a fuss you're all making out of it." This certainly stopped the laughter.

"Must you be a wet blanket over everything?" Iris retorted. "We're all just having a little bit of fun. And plus, it's not like Ash's going to care if we laugh at him. That kid isn't even here right now."

"Iris, I wouldn't try to understand Paul right on the spot," Dawn said. "It'll take a while to see where he's coming from."

"Forget him, Iris," Georgia stepped in. "Apparently he's not a Dragon Trainer, therefore not my problem. You, on the other hand−."

"It's his darn attitude that irks me, while we were on the way to New Island!" Iris shouted at her rival, who fell back from the intensity, while the Dragon Girl resumed her fiery glare towards the unaffected Veilstone City Trainer. "Just because some of us aren't competing in this Champions League doesn't give you the right to belittle us as you please. What's your problem anyway?!"

"It seems that I've overstayed my welcome, not that I planned to be here any longer," Paul muttered, turning face. Just before he walked off…

"You still harbor a piece of bitterness, don't you?" Sabrina spoke up suddenly. Everyone then glanced at Paul, who still hadn't budged from his spot. "In spite of the better changes you made since your defeat by Ash's hand, the single goal you have in conquering Pyramid King Brandon has been your primary drive in obtaining power. Now that you're closer to this opportunity once more…"

"I don't remember asking for your opinion," Paul replied back, head slightly turned to her direction.

It was apparent that he was holding back anger; no doubt Sabrina had managed to nail the target. The mood had changed from earlier joy to glum seriousness. The group caught in between glanced back and forth between those two unmoving figures. Even Haunter hid itself, cowering from the contention taking place with its dear psychic friend and the strange young man. Sabrina maintained her neutral expression and stare upon Paul.

"How you take the truth is up to you," Sabrina said. "With my developed and mastered psychic powers, nothing can be kept secret from me for too long. However, my intention wasn't to make you feel the way you are now. I only wish to help."

"'Helping the competition,' is that what this is now?" Paul questioned sardonically. "Just stay out of my way until it's time for us to battle."

With those final words, he took off in a cold manner and disappeared into the crowd of registering Pokémon Trainers. The group took a collective breath of relief before looking back towards the Saffron City Gym Leader.

"What was that all about?" Misty brought up.

"Sabrina, do you really know what Paul's problem is?" Max asked.

"I wasn't bluffing when I inferred that I can read into his soul," Sabrina said. "However, that's for Paul to share at his discretion, not for me to go about abusing my power. I can even read into each of your souls as well. Although…" She kept a peculiar gaze on Anabel. "Yours is the most interesting out of this group. I detect a special ability from you."

"You're not far from the truth," Anabel replied. "I'm not a psychic user like you are, but I do have special gifts that have helped me reach into the hearts of Pokémon."

"Among other things you've also kept within your heart," Sabrina concluded with a subtle wink and smile, much to the Salon Maiden's confusion and eventual blushing upon realization. She was quick enough to catch on what Sabrina had implied on what she did keep within her heart. No one else knew otherwise but those two now.

"_Haun-ta! Hau Hau Haw!_" Haunter cackled, emerging back to Sabrina's side.

"Hey, gang? Can we go get something to eat now?" May proposed, hunched over and holding her stomach. "I don't think my tummy can wait any longer without food."

"We know Ash is here, thanks to Paul," Dawn said. "It'll be a matter of time before any one of us can finally catch him."

"That is an exquisite idea, Dawn," Cilan applauded. "Fortunately for many of you, my brothers and I have been selected to be among great chefs to cook up a great feast for the opening ceremony for Trainer and spectator alike. What perfect timing!"

"Cilan, if you don't mind, I'd like to observe your dishes for myself," Brock requested.

"It's not a problem. Just follow me and everything will be ready fairly soon."

Both Cilan and Brock took their leave. The others saw them off while pondering what their next activity would be while waiting for the food to be ready and for the opening festivities to start.

"Hey! Who wants to have a practice battle with me?" Max openly suggested. "I'm game!"

* * *

_Later that evening…_

"Welcome, all competing Trainers to the second ever Champions League to be hosted!" the voice of the announcer declared, followed by the cheers of the crowd in the large main arena. "Here in the New Island Conference, Pokémon Trainers selected by the Pokémon League have the opportunity to tangle with some of the top Trainers in the world, which also include various Gym Leaders, Elite Four members, and even our renowned Champions."

"YEAH!"

"WOO!"

"GET SOME!"

The audience was filled with Pokémon fans and supporters for the competitors alike. They were, in no doubt, excited that this event was finally coming underway. Over two hundred Trainers stood within the large field surrounded by the arena. One random Trainer was also graciously selected to run the steps carrying the torch that was lit with the sacred flame of the Legendary Pokémon, Ho-Oh. The Trainer made it to the top and lit the main holder up, officially igniting the commencement of the New Island Conference and the spirits of the Pokémon fans.

"This time around, we also have something more to look forward to, if you would please, Scott?"

"Testing… testing… is this thing working correctly?" Scott's voice echoed from the speakers, eliciting much laughter from the audience and even from the competing Trainers standing center on the plain dirt battlefield.

"Hi, Scott!" a random child from the audience yelled out.

"How're y'all doing, folks? My name is Scott, owner of the prestigious Battle Frontier. Along with the various powerful Trainers standing on the field are twelve of my own special battlers, the Frontier Brains of Kanto and Sinnoh. Trainers, if you do manage to engage a Frontier Brain in battle at some point during the tournament, know that you'll also have a shot in trying out the Battle Frontier Challenge if you surpass our expectations. Definitely looking forward to this!"

"Thank you, Scott!" the regular announcer's voice took over. "Now with the flame of Ho-Oh burning brightly in both at its special place and hopefully within the eyes of our competitors, we will now see the match-ups for tomorrow's preliminary rounds. Remember that even members of the Elite Four and the Champions are competing as well, so best of luck to all! Many of you Trainers have looked forward to the opportunity to beating the best. Well, now's your chance! The Randomizer is now on!"

Everyone looked up to the large screen, filled with large rows from top to bottom of many faces. Some of the Trainer cards were sadly empty and were replaced with a large question mark as the main picture with their names at the bottom of the card. The names could be barely seen unless one were to watch the process on a smaller and clearer monitor. And so the shuffling began…

And the match-ups for the preliminary rounds have been set.

* * *

**The longest chapter at this point, but only because of the lengthy author's note in the beginning. Anyway, I'll be a tease once more and leave it there, the first battles will be revealed by the next chapter. At least now, I've gotten the character interactions I wanted/needed. I hope you readers didn't get lost along the way. Anyway… it's time.**

**Time to measure up how my writing skills are. Please review!**

**L-ater!**


	6. Shifting Rivals! Begin Preliminaries!

**I've been having more time to write these chapters now, which is ironic since I'm taking a summer semester at the university. Not that I'm complaining, of course. Let's see how long this good fortune will last…**

* * *

_The next morning…_

There were some preliminary battles scheduled as early as nine o'clock, yet prior to their commencement the entire island was filled to the brim with activity and energy. The competing Trainers and the thousands of visiting Pokémon fans were up and about in checking out what's been going on in New Island now that the Champions League New Island Conference had officially begun from the previous night.

Of course, the first round was considered to be the hardest for some Trainers, considering if nerves and anxiety had persisted overnight and prevented sufficient rest and sleep. But that's where the true test would begin if these Trainers have truly earned the right to compete in the first place.

Now turning back to our favorite group…

"Man, I don't know what to do right now or which battle to check out," Iris said, wandering about the wide streets with company. "It's so hard to decide with so many powerful Trainers, Gym Leaders, and Elite Four members competing right now. I don't even know who's who right now."

"Misty was set to battle some guy an hour ago and at the water field too," Dawn replied back. "May and Max went to support her. I would've gone, but I slept in by accident."

"_Pip-lup_," Piplup agreed, hanging from Dawn's shoulder.

"You call that 'sleeping in'?" Iris brought up. "Georgia was still asleep when we passed her room, snoring like her Beartic."

"Brock went to check on his brother for his match prior to noon," Cilan added, reading out of a small pamphlet as the three of them walked about. "I have to say that my brothers and I are dealing with a double-edged knife right now."

"How so?"

"Our battles have been scheduled for two days from now as the Pokémon League wants to let this simmer out as long as possible, also as part of the test of patience for all competitors. I can understand that this kind of waiting can be unsettling on the nerves, especially when dealing with a very delicate and critical recipe for the next battle."

"Uh, Cilan? You kinda lost me."

"Don't worry about it," Iris chipped in. "You get used to Cilan's Connoisseur way of talking after a while. It's actually fun listening to him when you get past his… special mannerisms."

"You're right, Iris," Dawn said with a bright smile. "No need to worry. Hey, Cilan, anyone else we know competing this hour?"

"We've heard that Misty made it through her match with flying colors," Cilan began, skimming through a printed list within the pamphlet. "Brock's brother and Sabrina, the other Kanto Gym Leader we met yesterday, have their battles within the next couple of hours, close to noon. And then the fair Anabel and the overzealous Paul, their preliminary matches take place tomorrow afternoon."

"What about Ash?" Dawn asked.

"Did you find his name?" Iris added. "When we checked the public monitor, his photo was unavailable."

"Yeah, his is… actually one of the last battles to conclude this day," Cilan said. "A funny thing while looking through the tournament brackets is that I found some very familiar faces competing as well."

"What do you mean?"

Cilan looked up from the pamphlet and grinned at what he saw ahead. He then gestured to both Dawn and Iris to look right in front of them. They were greeted to the sight of a familiar strapping young man with auburn hair, wearing a red tank top and cargo shorts, with his back turned towards them.

"Just look right there."

"Is that…? It's Steffen!"

"Hey, it's 'Stephan'!" the muscular young man shouted back, only to see the familiar faces of Iris and Cilan. "Oh, it's you guys! How's it going?"

"We're doing great," Cilan replied. "Are you competing in the tournament as well?"

"You bet, Cilan! I made it into the Top Four of the Kanto Indigo Conference a while ago after our encounter in Unova, thus qualifying for the Champions League New Island Conference. Say, is Ash competing here too?"

"We found out that he's going to be one of the last scheduled matches for today," Iris answered. "When are you going to battle?"

"I'm stuck for tomorrow morning, even though I want to battle right now," Stephan said, miming a crying face.

"Are there any more of our friends and rivals from Unova here as well?" Cilan asked.

"Oh! I actually saw Virgil a while ago," Stephan brought up. "What's today again?"

"Tuesday."

"Then he should be battling Friday morning and I think it might be against someone from the Elite Four."

"Yikes!" Dawn interrupted. "I hope he's strong enough to last."

"Nah, he won the Vertress Conference over a year ago, he'll be fine," Stephan brushed off. "Say, do I know you?"

"No, but my name's Dawn and this is Piplup," Dawn said, having gestured to herself and to the Penguin Pokémon on her shoulder before extending a hand out to Stephan. "I'm one of Ash's old friends from Sinnoh."

"Nice to meet ya, I'm Stephan," Stephan replied back, grabbing Dawn's hand firmly. "And I'm gonna win this whole thing!"

"Good to see that you hadn't lost any of your spice, Stephan," Cilan commented.

_Also good to hear someone's getting my name right,_ Stephan thought with a brief smile. "Anyway, aside from Virgil, I bumped into Cameron earlier."

"Great! How's he doing?"

"I… don't know what to say," Stephan chuckled uneasily. "Thing is he 'almost' made it in, but it turns out that he was supposed to make at least another successive placing in the Top Eight of a regional Conference; his latest was Top Sixteen, which ruined his record a bit… and he missed registration."

"Ouch, what's he up to now?" Iris asked, concerned for the Trainer spoken of. "Why else would he be here then?"

"He told me that he and his Lucario would train for the next one, and then immediately left for the forest to train," Stephan explained with a shrug. "He left before I could tell him that the next one would be in the next ten years."

"That kid," Iris sighed civilly.

"You know, that's how Lucario looked right before they left."

"Hmm… what about Bianca?"

"Last I heard from her, she was studying under Professor Juniper. I think she had an interest in working as her assistant for a bit."

"I see."

"Them aside, the only other Trainer that comes to mind from Unova is Trip," Cilan said with a quick snap of his fingers.

"Is he competing?" Dawn quickly inquired.

"Well−."

"That's kind of a silly question to ask, Dawn, and I'll tell you why," Iris intervened rather haughtily. "Trip thinks very little of the Kanto region, always making fun of it and Ash whenever they crossed paths. Why would he want to be here anyway?"

"Funny story about that," Stephan began. "In order for me to qualify for the Champions League, I actually had to beat Trip in the Indigo Conference, putting him in the Top Eight. So far, if I remember correctly, he also previously ranked Top One Twenty-Eight back at the Vertress Conference."

"Wait… he competed in the Kanto League?!"

"That is quite the wild card dish to taste," Cilan said. "I've noticed that he's been changing up his style back in Unova, but to cross over like that… it takes great leaps and bounds."

"You're all making it sound like he hated the Kanto region," Dawn remarked. "That's not the case, is it?" Stephan shook his head.

"Trip didn't hate Kanto, he just didn't think highly of it at all," Stephan explained. "That was until Ash had beaten him back at Unova that sparked an interest for him to travel here. But going through Kanto eventually grew on him and he came to enjoy the 'simple hillbilly pleasures' Kanto had to offer, at least that's what Trip said. Of course, I loved it either way! But enough of that, I want to see Ash again. He's probably super strong by now!"

"We'll see by five o'clock today if the plate is ready to be served," Cilan said.

"You know, with all this talk about past rivals, I'm surprised we haven't covered _your_ rival, Cilan," Iris brought up. "As much as I feel like I'm going to regret it, what's Burgundy up to? Everything's been too quiet when we briefly returned to Unova and we hadn't had a run-in with her so far."

"It's a funny story now that you mentioned it," Cilan replied, having seemingly conjured an elegant purple envelope in his hand. "My brothers held on to this for me. It's actually from Burgundy."

"What's it about?" Dawn asked.

"Is it more of her screaming vendetta against you for leaving the Unova region… again?" Iris suggested in a deadpan tone.

"Have a taste, my friends," Cilan said, offering the perfume-scented letter to them,

Stephan took hold of the letter from Cilan and he, along with Iris and Dawn at both sides, started to read through it. As the three of them read through Burgundy's letter, each carried on their own expressions. Dawn's eyes grew to be pretty wide. Iris's jaw dropped and hung agape. Stephan was… himself, but nonetheless had a bemused look on his face.

"Um, Cilan?" Dawn first spoke.

"Are you sure that was Burgundy that sent you that letter?" Iris continued off. "Because by the end, she sounded like she chilled out… a lot."

"Let's just say my departure had caused her to make some deeper insights into her life," Cilan began. "Though she's still determined to beat me one day…"

"It says that she's now a certified B-Class Pokémon Connaisseuse and is still studying to become A-Class just so she could finally catch up to you," Stephan said, having reread parts of the letter. "It sounds like she's waiting for the right time to confront you on even ground."

"I've got to admit, that's mature even for Burgundy's standards," Iris commented, a smirk starting to form from her mouth. "Looks like you left more than a sour taste in her mouth for leaving her, Cilan."

"Now, now, let's not dwell on the past for long," Cilan said, taking back the letter from Stephan. "But I really do look forward to see her progress when I do return."

"Wow, it sounds like everyone's growing up now," Dawn said in amazement. "Compared to when I first met them in Unova until now, I'm really impressed."

"Yeah, provided that you have a rival that actually improves herself overtime and not just on her trash talk," Iris brought up.

"Funny, I could say the exact same thing about you," Georgia's voice rang out, seemingly out of nowhere to everyone's shock.

The group did pinpoint the direction from where the Dragon Buster's voice came from and there she was, appearing miffed; no doubt it was from overhearing Iris's last comment about her. Then again, what else is new?

"What are you doing up and awake? I thought you'd still be catching up on your useless beauty sleep."

"For your information, the only one that was sleeping in my room _was_ my Beartic," Georgia clarified. "It deserved to sleep in after some late night training we did last night."

"Then where did you run off to this morning?" Dawn asked, to which Georgia smirked.

"One of the first matches for this morning caught my interest. It happened to be between Sinnoh Gym Leader Candice against the Gym Leader from Johto, Clair."

"And why would you be interested in them?" Iris inquired.

"You seriously don't know?" Georgia snorted in retaliation.

"Will you just stop mocking me and tell me already?!"

Cilan walked over to Iris and placed a hand on her shoulder as a manner to calm her down. Stephan had also stepped in as a precaution next to Georgia to prevent her to do something possibly regretful.

"Clair specializes in Dragon-type Pokémon while Candice uses Ice-types," Stephan explained, to which realization had dawned upon Iris.

"Then that means…" Iris drew out.

"While Clair did manage to pull a last minute victory over Candice's Abomasnow and I was upset over that Dragon Master's win, I learned some new techniques in handling Dragon-type Pokémon from that battle alone," Georgia said with a triumphant grin before sending a pointing finger towards her rival. "Until our next battle, you've better have learned something new from these battles going on right now if you still want to be considered my rival."

"Slow down. What do you want me do exactly?"

"Simple, my dear Iris. Just find the next match with a Dragon Master, learn from his or her battle style, apply it to your own Pokémon, and meet me here at this exact spot in exactly one week for our battle." Georgia concluded with pointing to the ground around her for emphasis.

"At the exact same time?" Iris suggested nonchalantly.

"You know it," Georgia immediately replied, turning her back to the group. "Now, if you ladies and gents… and whatever Iris is excuse me, I'm going to start training for our battle. Later." With an attempted cool wave, she bid off from the group and walked away. _Ha, they didn't even try to ask me who I found last night training._

"How did your late night training go?" Cilan asked in a coincidental, but friendly tone. Georgia momentarily stiffened, but regained her composure. Fortunately for her as well, her back was still turned as to not alert the others to her comical facial reaction.

"It was good, you know. By the way, you guys know when Ash's battle going to happen?"

"Later today at five. Why?"

"Oh, nothing," Georgia brushed off with a slight wave. "I'll be off now." She left the rest of them behind for good this time.

"You know, you've got to admit about having a rival that wants you to be better," Cilan remarked. "I know I'll admit that if Burgundy had focused more on stirring up her evaluations instead of her desire for bitter vengeance back then, she might have a bit more of a tasteful impact as a Connaisseuse."

"What the world would be like without rivals," Stephan added in a contented sigh. "Speaking of such, I need to train really hard if I want to catch up to Ash. I'll see you guys at his match!" With that said, he also took off in a rush, leaving the three of them as they were originally.

"Well, at least we managed to kill some time before Forrest's battle," Dawn mentioned. "I'm sure Brock is waiting for us right now."

"It's still not time yet, but it wouldn't spoil the dish to check on it right now," Cilan said.

Before the Pokémon Connoisseur even noticed, his pamphlet of the New Island Conference was snatched by Iris, who was scanning through the tournament roster in a comically fiery speed with an additional growl added for effect. Dawn and Cilan eventually noticed the swift ruffling of the pages, right before the Dragon Trainer threw the pamphlet back into Cilan's hands.

"Iris?" Dawn asked carefully.

Before she got an answer, Iris sped off the same way as Stephan had, if not in a more noticeably faster rate with Axew clinging onto her hair.

"The Dragon Elite Four from Hoenn, Drake, is battling right now!" Iris shouted back in her wake to her friends. "I'm not going to let Georgia the kid show me up! I'll see you guys at Forrest's battle!" Once Iris was out of sight as well, Dawn and Cilan exchanged puzzled looks.

"This day just keeps getting better, doesn't it?" Dawn brought up sarcastically.

* * *

_Later in the evening…_

"Howdy there, folks!" the voice of the commentator vibrated out, mixing in with the cheers of the large-ranged audience. "I hope you all have been able to hang on with all this intensive battling going on today. Though it has only been the first day into the Champions League, I was already on the edge of my seat as the matchups were decided."

"YEAH! WOO-HOO!"

"Now we've finally reached the end of the day and Pokémon League wants to thank all you hardcore fans for supporting the competitors through and through," the commentator continued. "The battles in the other four arenas are coming to their close as far as I've heard, but this battle will hopefully end this fantastic day on a high note. We're all in for a treat, given the Trainers participating on the large and regular battlefield."

More cheering had ensued as the Trainer squares on both opposite sides of the field opened up to reveal the last two competitors for the day being elevated to ground level.

"On the left side, please welcome an up-and-coming Trainer of Mossdeep City from the Hoenn region, Jump!"

A young tan-skinned man with noticeably puffy lips, wearing a gray beanie and an orange sweater with black outlines, was waving out to the crowd with an obnoxious laugh to boot. His opponent was not as energetic as he was as he also emerged from the ground. He simply kept to himself, the rim of his cap continuing to shadow over his eyes. The Pikachu on his shoulder mimicked his rather stoic expression.

"And now on the right, please welcome an old fan favorite returning to the competition for the first time for years and native to our fair region of Kanto, Ash of Pallet Town!"

* * *

"Aah!" May gasped.

"May, what's wrong?" Max asked.

"That's Ash?! I-I… I… I bumped into him yesterday!"

"What?!" the rest of their friends chorused in. They all managed to obtain seats at the second row, close to the action. Misty, Brock, Dawn, Iris, and Cilan all looked towards the direction of the brunette Coordinator and her brother.

"When we got off the ship… and when we were separated…"

* * *

_*Crash*_

"_Aah! Oh, geez! I'm so sorry!" May cried, not even opening her eyes out of embarrassment of her collision against another person._

_She then felt a hand grab onto her right wrist and pulled her back onto her feet. When the Petalburg City Coordinator did open her eyes, she was greeted with a sight of a young man who was a few inches taller than her, garbed in a sleeveless red vest with white outlines and large white collar on top of a black short-sleeve shirt. His eyes were mysteriously concealed in shadow by the rim of his red cap. She quickly felt intimidated for some reason, possibly by his aura alone, and didn't want to deal with this awkward situation any longer than necessary._

"_I'm sorry, but I lost my friends and brother and I don't know where they went off to," May confessed, looking down to her feet. _

_The stranger then pointed to the direction of the Pokémon Center, giving the green-bandanna wearing young girl the idea on where they have possibly gone to. _

* * *

"Wow, if even you couldn't recognize Ash when he arrived to the island, he must've changed a lot," Misty said.

"I suppose that's usually the case when you don't see someone for a long period of time," Brock mused. "I never imagined such a drastic change in just a year after leaving Iris and Cilan."

"Yeah, what gives?" Iris questioned. "Is that really Ash fighting there right now? How can we be sure he's not an imposter?"

"There's no other way to say it, but that is Ash," Anabel then spoke up, having sat the farthest away from the group next to May.

"Anabel? I didn't realize you were sitting there. My bad."

"I was just recovering from May's astonishment, that's all."

"Sorry about that, but I just get worked up because… well, you know."

"I see Ash is still a touchy subject to discuss," a rather even-toned voice added in, revealing to have originated from Sabrina sitting in the row behind the group, much to their additional surprise.

"Hey, Sabrina," Misty greeted. "Can you confirm for us that this is the real Ash battling down there? No one here seems to want to believe that the sad boy with the red cap completely covering his eyes and Pikachu on his shoulder is Ash."

"Sorry!" Dawn interrupted. "It's just too good to be true!"

"And I wouldn't necessarily label him as 'sad,' more like… 'unenthusiatic'?" Cilan suggested casually. As they carried on their rather meaningless argument, Brock leaned forward on his lap to grab Anabel's attention.

"Hey, Anabel, can you read what Ash or his Pikachu are feeling?" Brock asked, to which he received an immediate response of the Salon Maiden shaking her head.

"For one thing, this crowd's getting in the way of my concentration," Anabel explained, frowning. "And for some reason, I can't seem to feel anything from Pikachu. It's not exactly a 'hollow' or 'empty' feeling, but it's kind of like… running into a wall, a dead-end to be specific."

"Interesting."

"I'm curious about his opponent though. Do you think Ash will have a hard time against him?"

"As far as I know about Jump, the first time I've seen him was back at the Hoenn Ever Grande Conference a few years ago," Brock began. "That was also back when Ash was competing in it as well. Jump faced off against a Trainer named Morrison, who was one of Ash's rivals at the time, during the preliminaries as well, but lost."

"I know I saw Morrison around in the tournament, but I don't know if he started his preliminary round yet," Max intervened.

"Anyway, we'll see how much he's changed since the Ever Grande Conference," Brock concluded.

* * *

_Elsewhere in the main stadium…_

"Man, I can't believe I couldn't find Cilan and the others," Stephan mumbled to himself, sitting in the second-to-front row, surrounded by various screaming Pokémon fans. His frown turned into a smile, knowing full well of what's about to happen. "But that's not going to stop me from seeing how strong Ash has gotten!"

He then stood up with the rest of the cheering spectators and basically joined the crowd.

* * *

_Up in the higher cheap seats…_

Paul stood by the stair railings, leaning down and looking upon the upcoming battle with a grim frown.

* * *

_Back on the battlefield…_

"This will be a three-on-three battle with no time limit," the referee announced as the spectators calmed down. "The Trainer with at least one usable Pokémon left wins. Substitutions are allowed. Trainers, go ahead and select your first Pokémon."

"Heh heh heh heh heh! I remember seeing your face around from somewhere before," Jump chuckled, having a Poké Ball on hand. "I think you're Morrison's friend from the Ever Grande Conference years back, that's right. Oh, boy, this is gonna be sweet! First you, and then Morrison!"

"…" Ash made no reaction to his opponent's arrogant taunts.

"Okay, okay, okay. Let's get this show going! I'll start… with my Dunsparce!"

Jump threw the Poké Ball and in a bright flash from the device, out came the Land Snake Pokémon, landing on the ground with a quiet thump.

"_Dun…!_" Dunsparce hissed with a quick rattle of its tail.

"I remember Ash wanting to catch a Dunsparce back at the Decolora Archipelago," Iris commented.

"Such bittersweet memories… fading," Cilan mumbled, strangely dabbing a handkerchief to his tearing eyes.

"Hey! Those memories were not exactly the 'fondest,' you know!" Iris complained upon seeing Cilan's behavior.

Ash turned his head to the direction of his Pikachu. Both long-time friends locked gazes. With a brief nod from the Pallet Town Trainer, Pikachu leapt off from his shoulder and into the battle.

"It looks like Ash has chosen his trademark Pikachu to start off his preliminary battle," the commentator announced enthusiastically. "This should be an interesting matchup with Pikachu versus Dunsparce."

"The match begins now," the referee declared, both arms and flags in the air. "Jump gets the first move."

"Sweet, this is going to be quick," Jump remarked, grinning like a fool. "Dunsparce, use Drill Run!"

Dunsparce had lifted itself up with the help of its little wings. It then pointed its drill-shaped tail towards Pikachu and begun to rotate its whole body rapidly. The air pressurized around its body made the Land Snake Pokémon appear as a drill, as to match the namesake of its attack. Within a brief moment, it charged forward to attack. Pikachu stood his ground, waiting for Dunsparce to come closer.

"What's Ash doing?!" Iris questioned in outrage. "Drill Run is super effective on Pikachu. Why isn't he saying anything?"

As soon as Dunsparce was within suitable distance, Pikachu leapt up to the attack and spun his own body, effectively rolling away of the Drill Run. The maneuver caught Dawn's eye, brining back memories on when she first came up with the idea for that stylish evasion before teaching Ash's Pokémon that same technique.

"What is this, a circus?" Jump remarked. "Why don't you attack back instead of being part of a trapeze act? Heh heh heh heh heh! Or does Pikachu not know any attacks? Dunsparce, Pursuit! Let's go!"

A black aura emanated from Dunsparce after breaking out of its Drill Run. The Land Snake Pokémon changed direction and flew in right after Pikachu. Jump smirked to himself as Dunsparce neared its target, not noticing Ash tipping up the rim of his cap as he looked up towards Pikachu with an exposed eye.

"… Iron Tail!" Ash commanded in a calm, yet bold voice, much to the surprise to his former companions and others that knew him.

Power was concentrated into Pikachu's tail, giving it the appearance of lustrous metal. The Mouse Pokémon timed his attack according to his Trainer's command, turning around and striking Dunsparce on the skull as it was close enough for an effective strike. Dunsparce was rattled upon impact and was sent down to the ground, creating a large crater upon its crash.

"Dunsparce!" Jump cried hysterically.

"… … … Iron Tail again!"

Pikachu dove down obediently, quickly charging up power into his once more metallic tail. The momentum from his fall combined with his natural strength created a small explosion of dust upon impact. Pikachu leapt out of the crater unscathed. The same couldn't be said about his opponent, with eyes dazed and in spirals along with the rest of the body motionless.

"Dunsparce is unable to battle!" the referee declared, raising an arm to Ash's side. "The victory goes to Pikachu!"

"Incredible!" the commentator began. "With only two strikes from Iron Tail, Dunsparce is already down for the count. And Pikachu appears to be just fine. How will Jump react to this?"

"Dunsparce, return," Jump grumbled, recalling his defeated Land Snake Pokémon into its Poké Ball. "Thanks though, I owe you one. But that uppity Trainer and his Pikachu are going down for sure! Shelgon, let's go!"

From Jump's second Poké Ball emerged the large Endurance Pokémon. Shelgon landed on the field with a heavier thud. It crouched on its legs, leering at its smaller opponent. Pikachu remained unaffected from the stare.

"Ash isn't switching," May commented. "Pikachu's at a disadvantage against a Dragon-type Pokémon."

"Electric-type moves won't be effective against Shelgon," Max added.

"That kid's letting his ego swell up from his first victory," Iris remarked snidely with a shrug.

"That's happened a lot in the past," Misty sighed.

"Well, this is quite the mystery to solve," Cilan mused. "It looks like there's only one thing to do at a time like this." Iris's ears perked up upon hearing the implications before sending an incredulous look towards him.

"Oh, please no!" Iris cried.

With a snap of his fingers, the green-haired Pokémon Connoisseur stood up from his seat as it was that special time once more.

"It's evaluating time!" Cilan announced precisely, extending a hand out in the direction of Ash's Pikachu. "Ash and Pikachu: they've been long time buddies whose bond has been heated and tempered over time. Potent as the recent Iron Tail attack we've personally witnessed. Without even relying on their elemental abilities of electricity, their strengths lie on their ability to keep their opponents guessing on their next battle ingredient. Elusive, yet able to amount a full-frontal assault… Pikachu's small size and slim build only masquerades his true power and the size of his heart towards his Trainer. Such boldness… such power… such exquisite taste! Their battle recipe leaves you breathless, craving for more until you pass out from overwhelming desire."

"Great, but that still leaves the mystery on what's going on in their heads," Iris commented. The whole group remained uneasy over the said mystery and over Cilan's dramatic evaluation as he still continued on.

* * *

_On the other side of the arena…_

Georgia sat in her seat, intently observing the upcoming battle between Pikachu and Shelgon.

_A Dragon-type, just as I was hoping for,_ Georgia thought as her eyes wandered over towards Ash. _Let's see how your last minute training works out here._

The crowd resumed cheering on for the coming round.

* * *

"Battle, begin!" the referee declared.

"So you're not going to switch out, are ya?" Jump taunted. "Well that's perfect. I wouldn't mind a free win after what you did to Dunsparce. Shelgon, use DragonBreath!"

From the center opening of Shelgon's body, a shimmering clear orb of energy formed. It expanded to be larger than its face before releasing a strong-looking beam from the front, decorated with white rings and sparkles, towards Pikachu. The Mouse Pokémon was poised, leaping up high into the air right as the attack ran through the ground he previously stood upon.

"… … Iron Tail!"

Pikachu powered up his tail once more before diving down towards Shelgon. The Endurance Pokémon remained inert, maintaining its leer upon the incoming Mouse Pokémon.

"Wow, staying with the same attack's gonna get you nowhere fast! Shelgon, counter it with Dragon Claw!"

The tips of Shelgon's frontal legs glowed light blue, brimming with its draconic power. It managed to lift one leg up to intercept Pikachu's Iron Tail, igniting a small explosion of dark smoke upon collision. Pikachu was sent up into the air without any noise, but he managed to reposition himself to look down on the battlefield.

"… Use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu reacted quickly, garnering up electrical power into his body. Upon reaching the desired level, he unleashed a bright and powerful bolt into the clearing haze, striking down directly upon Shelgon, evident from its low groan of pain from the hit.

"Using an attack that doesn't even do much damage against a Dragon-type is a waste of energy," Jump chuckled, grinning widely. "I guess doing us the favor by using up your power is also fine by me. Shelgon, Double-Edge!"

"_Shel…_" Shelgon groaned.

Once the smoke had dissipated completely, the Endurance Pokémon was revealed to have electrical static discharge snaking around its entire body. Its clamping eyes explained its condition all too well.

"Okay, okay, okay, what's this?"

"Well, folks, it appears as Shelgon has somehow been paralyzed," the commentator pointed out. The spectators leaned in closer, murmuring towards one another what had happened. As they did so, the commentator vocalized their thoughts. "It is likely that Shelgon had received its paralysis from Pikachu's Thunderbolt. Really now, what are the chances of that happening early on in a match?"

"Brock, what do you think really happened?" Misty asked.

"In all honesty, it all happened too fast to tell what the cause of Shelgon's paralysis was," Brock replied. "Though Thunderbolt itself has a small chance in paralyzing its target, Shelgon hasn't attacked Pikachu enough physically to get it through Static, Pikachu's Ability."

"But it's well-known that Static would have a higher chance of causing paralysis than Thunderbolt alone," Cilan continued.

"Whatever the reason may be, Ash has total control over this battle now, though Shelgon was already slow to begin with," May said thoughtfully.

The group murmured into a consensus while Anabel still maintained a somber gaze upon the field, moreover on Ash's side. Sabrina, who still quietly sat behind the group, noticed this. And hovering over her a fair few feet was Haunter, sporting a large soda cup in one hand and a number-one-emblazoned foam finger on the other disembodied hand.

"Okay, okay, okay, this isn't cool," Jump muttered, frowning before resuming a smirk on his large lips. "Oh, well. I guess even the small fry gets a lucky shot now and again. You won't last against Shelgon's impenetrable defense!"

Ash grabbed the tip of his cap and lifted it up slightly, revealing more of the intimidating glare of his left eye alone as his other eye was still under the shadow. Jump raised an eyebrow at the gesture. Ash's group of former companions was literally at the edge of their seats now.

Something was up. Ash had a plan.

"… … Agility!"

Those that knew Ash sparked up in shock and became fully alert. Georgia grinned knowingly to herself. Paul's eyes shot wide open. Their attention was focused on Pikachu, who then leapt off on all fours in an incredible speed. Pikachu dashed all around Shelgon as the latter attempted to lock its sight upon the wily Mouse Pokémon, but it merely wound up with an additional headache to go with its troublesome paralysis. Just to prove the new speed boost he gained, a few transparent blue afterimages were left in Pikachu's wake.

"Pikachu is surely flaunting off speed power," the commentator said. "While Shelgon is stuck by paralysis, Pikachu's getting faster and faster. Copies of the little Pokémon seem to cover the entire battlefield! Which one's the real Pikachu?"

"Why's Pikachu increasing his speed when he's already faster than Shelgon at this point?" Dawn asked.

"I have a tingling on what Ash's recipe might be for this round," Cilan said, also trying to keep his eyes on the real Pikachu. "It's simple, yet it's definitely going to pack a powerful punch for Shelgon."

"I'm getting dizzy over here!" Jump complained. "Will you quit those parlor tricks and just try to attack?"

Ash smirked barely, though it didn't go unnoticed.

"… … … … Electro Ball!"

Pikachu leapt out of his afterimages, already gathering up electricity. This time, he was redirecting this power around his tail, condensing and forming it into a bright and sizeable orange-yellow orb of electrical energy. Giving it a brief test by dangling the Electro Ball around his tail, Pikachu had then flung the attack at a speed that rivaled his own from Agility. The Electro Ball struck Shelgon squarely in the face, eliciting a greater explosion than the last upon impact. Shelgon was seen thrown back out of the haze, rolling onto its side with revealed spiraled eyes.

"Not you too!" Jump cried out.

"Shelgon is unable to battle!" the referee declared, once more raising a flag to Ash. "This winner of this round is Pikachu!"

"And that's another knockout tally for Pikachu!" the commentator exclaimed. "To be able to overcome the minor disadvantage against Shelgon, Ash and his Pikachu have proven to be quite the exceptional team. Now with two Pokémon down, how will Jump counterattack?"

"What just happened?" Dawn voiced out the thoughts of the group.

"Ash managed to overcome the type disadvantage without getting much damage at all," Max stated. "How?"

"Luck was certainly a big part of it," Sabrina spoke up, getting everyone's attention. "Here's what I managed to get from Ash. Even I had difficulty reading into him."

"_You_ had difficulty reading Ash?" Misty repeated incredulously before glancing at the Pallet Town Trainer himself. "Just what happened to him in the first place?"

"Ash's intention was to weaken Shelgon enough to be taken out by one powerful attack," Sabrina explained. "Part of it was to get Shelgon paralyzed, whether by Thunderbolt or by Static through direct contact."

"I see now," Brock intervened. "The Iron Tail was bound to do sufficient damage, and it was aimed on Shelgon's unprotected leg when they exchanged attacks."

"Then the Thunderbolt was extra assurance to get Shelgon paralyzed if the collision didn't do so," Max continued. "But why?"

"To power up Electro Ball, that's why," Cilan explained. "Electro Ball's power is dependent between the difference of speed between the user and the opponent. With Shelgon coming to a complete standstill by paralysis, plus the additional booster ingredient of Pikachu's Agility, the difference of speed was clearly a wide gap between the two. That gave Electro Ball enough power to knock out Shelgon before it could start moving again. What a technical, but very risky maneuver to pull off."

"Sabrina was right," Dawn said. "Luck did play a part in it as the Thunderbolt was able to paralyze Jump's Shelgon quickly. Wow."

* * *

_Even better than I thought it would go,_ Georgia thought with a hidden smile. _Though that dork is no Dragon Master, it's still refreshing to see a Dragon-type fall in battle. That Ash is capable of being a Dragon Buster if he wanted to with that Pikachu of his._

* * *

"Okay, okay, okay, this isn't cool anymore," Jump grumbled, having recalled his Shelgon. "I'm losing to a Pikachu, but I know the perfect Pokémon to take it down once and for all. Let's go!"

Jump threw in his third Poké Ball, revealing his final Pokémon for the preliminary round to be an Electivire. It landed with a thump that rivaled its predecessor. Just as before, Pikachu wasn't intimidated by his larger opponent.

"And Jump's final Pokémon is Electivire!" the commentator declared. "How will Ash go about against this powerful Electric-type Pokémon?"

"I remember he had an Electabuzz when he faced off against Morrison," Max commented. "It must've evolved since then."

"Ash is really asking for it now," Iris added. "Electivire has that special Ability that renders Electric attacks used against it useless."

"You mean Motor Drive," Brock clarified. "In addition to rendering attacks like Thunderbolt and Electro Ball useless, they would also allow Electivire to increase its speed, no doubt making it into a more formidable opponent."

"Wait, you don't think Ash would purposely try to power up Electivire just for a better challenge, would he?" Misty brought up.

"Even then, Ash still has two Pokémon he could use if Pikachu was to fall in battle and they would be fresh and ready to go."

"Still, I wonder how Ash got to be this good," May pondered aloud. "It's almost scary that he was able to anticipate his opponent's moves then destroy them with his own."

"One thing's for sure, we have to corner him," Dawn said resolutely.

* * *

"That Electivire is nowhere near as powerful as mine," Paul remarked with a small smirk and eyes closed. "It's already over. He doesn't stand a chance."

* * *

Ash gave a brief nod to the referee, who then signaled the next round to begin with raising both arms in the air and announcing that Ash was allowed the first move. Jump scowled over the fact that his opponent still continued battling with Pikachu.

"Now you decide to make fun of me by not switching out despite the _clear_ advantage I have over you?" Jump questioned. "You're not going to get away with this!"

"… … …" Ash remained silent, thrusting a hand forward. Pikachu understood the signal and charged forward towards Electivire.

"And now you're mocking me by saving us the trouble of coming over there. Fine by me! Electivire, get ready!"

"… Iron Tail!"

Still maintaining the major speed boost from Agility, Pikachu quickly leapt up into the air with a powered Iron Tail with the intent of using the additional momentum for extra power. Electivire braced its arms up to receive the impact. Even then, the power of Iron Tail managed to make the Thunderbolt Pokémon slide and stumble a few inches back.

"Not much you can do with your attacks since they'll barely do a thing to Electivire, unless you want to give us the extra speed boost. Now Electivire, grab that Pikachu!"

The two extensible black tails of Electivire quickly ensnared Pikachu just before he could bounce away. Pikachu struggled and kicked, but the binding was firm and wasn't planning to let go of him anytime soon. Ash frowned.

"… …"

"Heh heh heh heh! How are you gonna get out now?" Jump taunted, back to his goofy confident self. "Are you going to zap Electivire and give it a speed boost? Or are you going to recall your Pokémon and break your little record of no substitutions? It's your call! I can't wait to see what you do. Either way, it'll be sweeter than a candy cane!"

"How is Ash going to get out of this situation?" the commentator voiced out as the audience watched intently for the next move. "Pikachu has no way of getting out of those tails any time soon. Will Ash have to forgo his pride and send in a new Pokémon?"

"Okay, okay, okay, just to help you decide quicker, I think I'll torture you for a while," Jump snickered. "Electivire, ThunderPunch back to back! Go!"

Electivire was eager to comply as it charged up both fists with electrical power. They both glowed yellow brightly while sparks discharged from them for additional effect. Electivire promptly started punching Pikachu around in the face, who was still being held captive by the tails. Ash remained silent and strangely calm despite the fact that Pikachu was being repeatedly struck down by multiple ThunderPunches.

"Ash still hasn't given a command to Pikachu, who's still taking the blunt of those ThunderPunches," the commentator said. "Though the type disadvantage won't cause much damage to Pikachu, how long will this last?"

"Poor Pikachu, I don't know how much more the little guy can take," Misty commented.

"I know that Ash's battle style has been unpredictable in the past, but this is still blowing my mind away," Cilan said.

Various spectators were sharing equal feelings of concern over Pikachu as the Mouse Pokémon continued to receive such chaotic punishment. Stephan was mumbling cheers for Ash and Pikachu to hang in. Paul looked on, curious on what Ash had on overcoming this Electivire. And Anabel still held a somber look in the same direction as earlier.

Sabrina took one more careful mental note of her surroundings before wordlessly getting out of her seat, leaving Haunter watching the battle high in the air while vigorously munching on a bag of chips… and the bag itself.

"You're not as tough as I thought," Jump taunted, seeing Pikachu all scuffed up and worn from the ThunderPunch barrage. "Now it's time to make sure you go down with your own medicine. Electivire, Thunderbolt!"

"_E-lehhhct…!_" Electivire growled as static electricity started to crackle around its body. Pikachu hung mutely from the tails, waiting.

"…" Ash tipped the rim of his cap up once more, exposing his left eye out of the shadow once more, and grinned.

"_Aahhh-re!_" Electivire groaned suddenly, the stored up electricity seemingly backfiring as the discharge surged erratically throughout its fur.

"Okay, okay, okay, what's _this_?!" Jump cried; he wasn't the only one bewildered. Every other spectator, including Ash's little group, were dead attentive on the new phenomenon.

"Can it be? It can!" the commentator exclaimed. "As unlikely as this sounds, Electivire's been paralyzed just like Shelgon before it! This time, it'd be safe to assume that Pikachu managed to get one counterattack in under all those direct ThunderPunches with the Ability, Static."

"That's unorthodox, even for me!" Cilan added in amazement. "Waiting through all that physical contact just for Pikachu's Ability to kick in and save him at the nick of time, Ash must have trained Pikachu's endurance for situations like these. Amazing."

"He never ceases to amaze anyone, does he?" Iris brought out, met with the same astounded response from all of his friends.

Pikachu was still hanging around, though with a bored look on his face while watching Electivire suffer from its newly gained paralysis. Then he escaped by adding an additional insult to the Thunderbolt Pokémon's current injury: he bit down on one of Electivire's tails.

"_Vire!_" Electivire yelped, throwing Pikachu away out of reaction for feeling the Mouse Pokémon chomp on its tail.

"Hey! Can they do that?!" Jump complained, witnessing the act of Pikachu's great escape.

"… Agility… and Iron Tail!"

That was the most enthusiasm Ash had displayed throughout the entire preliminary round, as several people noted. No doubt, it was coming to an end with the intrepid commands he gave out. Pikachu became faster once more, leaping and dashing about with imitating blue afterimages following his wake. Electivire was unable to keep up, especially at random intervals when Pikachu struck with Iron Tail.

"You're not getting away that easy! Electivire, Protect!"

Electivire held its hands up, creating a spherical barrier of gleaming turquoise in preparation for Pikachu's incoming attack. However, the paralyzing static ensnared both of its arms. Electivire winced in pain, unable to hold up Protect long enough to fend off Pikachu. Pikachu snuck through the broken Protect and lashed an Iron Tail up Electivire's chest. The Thunderbolt Pokémon was lifted off its feet, right before Pikachu struck down into its abdomen once more, sending Electivire back onto the ground and on its behind. Electivire still managed to catch itself from its fall.

"… … … … Finish it!"

"_Pi-ka!_" Pikachu shouted with a final dive, sending the Iron Tail straight upon Electivire's forehead, causing a great explosion with a bit of backlash radiating throughout the field. Out of the crawling haze, Pikachu leapt out back to his side with great finesse, though clearly worn out from the excessive battling. The smoke cleared out quickly to reveal Electivire down for the count, sporting quite the scratch on its forehead to complement its spiraled red eyes.

"Electivire! Aw, man…!" Jump cried, disillusioned.

"Electivire is unable to battle!" the referee declared, raising the flag to Ash. "Pikachu wins! And the victory of this preliminary round goes to Ash of Pallet Town!"

"I can't believe if you can't, folks!" the commentator erupted alongside the raucous cheers of the audience. "For his debut back into battling in the big leagues, Ash has made a clear three-zero victory without having to reveal his other two Pokémon. We certainly have some contenders to look forward to in the Champions League! Thank you all for coming and participating in this grand first day!"

Amidst of all the cheers, Ash walked into the field to retrieve Pikachu. Picking up his long-time friend in his arms, he gave a faint smile and pat to the cheery Mouse Pokémon. Of course, this act didn't go unnoticed.

"At least aside from his new merciless battle tactics, he's still the same Ash that loves his Pokémon," Misty said, touched by the brief friendship scene.

"Maybe now we can try to catch him before he gets away," May suggested casually.

It wasn't until a few seconds after that the idea struck hard in everyone else's minds and looking upon the brunette Coordinator incredulously.

"What're we waiting for?" Dawn demanded.

"Let's get him!" Iris exclaimed.

In another ironic twist of fate, the spectators around them all stood up and began applauding for the great, even though it was one-sided, battle. The space to move around became limited and the group had difficulty in getting out of the crowd. Their cries and complaints were drowned out by further cheers for Ash.

Fortunately for one Salon Maiden, she thought and got ahead and was able to slip away the troublesome crowd.

Back up in the stands, Paul gave a bare nod of approval to the battle before taking his leave as well. Walking down the stairs and into the hallway of the arena, he passed a familiar and rather intimidating presence standing and leaning against the wall. Quick to notice, Paul locked eyes with her, allowing her to momentarily reach into his mind before he left once more in indifference.

_We need to talk…_

* * *

**There… Longest chapter so far, but this has a battle in it, so it's justifiable. Anyway, some of you may be wondering, why did I use the minor character-of-the-day (when he really isn't and was just thrown in), Jump? I needed an expendable Trainer that no one would really care if he was eliminated at the start, some of the other rivals and competitors from the anime I actually hold respect and want/can see making it somewhat far in the tournament, and the time's still rather soon for Ash to already be fighting an Elite Four member. Plus, Jump's dialogue was really fun to write after watching reruns of the Hoenn League Ever Grande Conference. "Okay, okay, okay, this is gonna be cool!"**

**Consider this a benchmark of how far Ash could become if he started playing smart in addition to his usual passion. If you've seen the battle between Ash's Pikachu against Volkner's Electivire, I somewhat based part of that fight here. And considering that Jump's just a regular Trainer, then there shouldn't be much of a problem. Anyway, he is capable of curb-stomping. One instance was against Crasher Wake, where he didn't lose any Pokémon despite revealing all three. **

**Can you remember the first curb-stomp battle Ash won? Hint: It's back at the Indigo Conference. **

**Okay, okay, okay, it's time to measure up how my writing skills are. :P Please review!**

**L-ater! And Happy 4****th**** of July!**


	7. Memories! Sacred or Secret?

**I'm glad my first written battle received positive feedback in both how it went and how it was written. And most of you that answered that little question from the past chapter were spot on. It was Ash's first League Battle ever against the (not-so) Astounding Mandi, beating his Exeggutor, Seadra, and Golbat with his Krabby turned Kingler after the first round. **

**Well, time to work on building the plot more. Just thought I'd give you all one more clue on how Ash is "operating." Simply pay attention on the types of Pokémon he'd be using, considerably in order. You may count Pikachu as the first step. It's really up to interpretation, but I'll do my best not to lead you too far astray. **

**There'll be no battles here this time, but it's only for you to start bearing in mind just in case you haven't already.**

* * *

_The next week…_

The first week of the Champions League New Island Conference had flown by quickly. The first wave of preliminary rounds was intense and a majority of regular Pokémon Trainers had already been eliminated, along with a good handful of Gym Leaders. The Elite Four and Champions of all competing regions have made it unscathed so far, only because they had the luck of not facing each other early on as did some unlucky and unprepared hotshot Trainers had. Nonetheless, the weaker Trainers were already eliminated and were reduced to becoming spectators to watch the remaining rounds and to prepare for future competitions.

Monday came around and the matchups for the second round have been set for the remaining competitors. The first round preliminaries were barely completed by Saturday despite the schedule squeezing, but with a good handful of Trainers already eliminated, the scheduled battles have been spread out a bit more evenly for the new week. As such, everyone had freedom to do as they pleased outside of their battle… provided that it wasn't illegal.

And now, the familiar group of friends opted for a walk around New Island in the more natural areas outside of all of the Pokémon commercialism.

"I can't believe this!" Misty cried out in frustration. "Almost a week and we still haven't confronted Ash since we watched his battle."

"It was a pretty awesome battle though," May said thoughtfully.

"Point is that he's certainly one tough cookie to find," Dawn pointed out. "I wish one of us had placed a tracker on him so that we'd know where he'd be."

"That's a bit being on borderline stalker, isn't it?" Iris questioned as Axew emerged half of his body out of her hair to observe the conversation.

"Please, I think I know what the borderline would be. There was this… interesting Trainer that seemed to fit that category while I traveled with Ash in Sinnoh."

"Didn't you tell us something like this already, Dawn?" May asked.

"About Conway and the fact that we haven't really heard much from him lately? Well, I'm still kinda surprised that he isn't here or even competing here. He _was_ a decent Trainer that had incredible strategies under his sleeve."

"Girls! You're losing focus," Misty called out in a huff. "Man, it's still frustrating that we still haven't bumped into Ash yet. I'm really worried since watching his battle."

While the former female companions of the Pallet Town Trainer continued to converse and lament over their missed friend, the boys stayed a few feet behind them in their own talk. In truth, they were more concerned about their lady friends than their missing friend at this moment.

"You'd think they're all in love with him from the way they carry on and on about him," Max remarked, hands placed casually behind his head.

"Don't forget, Max, Ash did make some sort of impact in their lives, good or bad, while traveling with him," Brock said. "In a way, they learned some things from him and him from them. Though while with Misty and me, he was still learning the basics of Pokémon, but I've gotta say that he's come a long way now."

"It's incredible to see how one life can affect another, at least speaking from experience as a Gym Leader, as I'm sure you'll agree with me, Brock," Cilan added. "It's funny to think though that Ash, being the only child that he is, created such powerful brother-sister dynamics with these girls from his time with them."

"I hear you, Cilan. Misty was the big sister for the first time, considering that she was the youngest of four. Those two used to argue a lot, but the friendship they made was indeed amazing."

"Then when May and I joined Ash, he was the older brother we always wanted," Max continued, smiling fondly as his memories of he, his sister, Ash, and Brock traveling together in the Hoenn and Kanto regions flashed across his mind. "I once thought that my sister might've seen Ash more than a mentor though."

"Really?" Brock mused, amused by the idea.

"We'll never really know unless we resolve it by seeing how May acts around Ash, but he's just so hard to find."

"I know I could spot both Iris and Dawn looking up to Ash as an older brother figure," Cilan commented. "I remember Ash recounting fond memories from his travels with you guys, including his Sinnoh journey with Dawn. And despite her teasing of Ash as a kid, Iris meant well. Those bittersweet moments when they had that volatile argument back at the Decolora Archipelago after that Dunsparce embezzling us with its Screech attack, those two knew how much they meant for one another."

A few seconds of silence passed through them while they continued to walk, disregarding the other ongoing conversation from the girls.

"I miss Ash," Max stated forlornly, looking down at the ground behind the girls' feet. Both Brock and Cilan each placed a comforting hand on the younger Trainer's shoulders. "What happened to him? Why does he not want us to find him? Or better yet, him to find us?"

The girls also overheard Max's lament and ceased their talking, looking back at him with equal looks of sympathy. May gestured for her brother to come advance closer to her before embracing her brother. Since he reached ten years of age, he grew to his sister's former height and ended up at least a couple inches shorter than her. It's amazing that she was able to maintain her heartfelt embrace on her brother while they continued walking down a clear stone path leading through a small mirthful grass park where various children, noncompeting Trainers and their Pokémon were at play. The current mood of the group was quite the contrast of the environment of the park.

Yet the bonds they formed from being together from their main cause strengthened and their hope in reaching out to their missing friend still shined as clear as the day. All this took place even as they passed a bench where a familiar face with lilac hair sat somberly and alone.

They didn't notice her as she also disregarded them passing through, but Anabel shared a lot more in common with them than they knew.

She looked into the clear blue sky, reflecting on a few urgent things of recent.

* * *

_Six days ago…_

"_Folks, this concludes this day's events and set of preliminary rounds," the voice of the commentator rang out. "We of the Pokémon League hope that you'll continue to stay and support these fine competitors through the preliminary rounds throughout the week. Have a great night and sleep well!"_

_A young Trainer that appeared seventeen years of age and notably dressed in a bit of red walked down the empty hallway beneath the main stadium he finished battling in. His Pikachu, though clearly worn out from the previous battles, maintained his place on the Trainer's shoulder. In spite of hearing the echoing cheers and roars of the audience from above, the hallway was rather eerily quiet with the only noticeable noises being his footsteps._

_As he advanced onward, another pair, though slightly softer sounding, of footsteps also heard reverberating in the hall before coming to a stop. The Trainer saw a face that he'd never imagine encountering at this moment of time, and especially at a place like this. The expression on her face was rather unreadable, though it was clear that she was in no mood for jokes._

"_Ash…" she said, drawing it out almost in a whisper._

"… … … …" _Ash merely looked at her, though she couldn't really tell from her side with the visor of his red cap covering over his eyes once more. He couldn't help but wonder why it was Anabel confronting him now, though he had to give her credit in doing something that even his former traveling companions were unable to do._

"_You've changed," Anabel stated out, keeping an unwavering gaze upon the Pallet Town Trainer. "What I want to know is why."_

"… …" _Ash frowned; he certainly didn't like being addressed as he was right now, but he couldn't deny the truth that flowed through the smooth lips of the Salon Maiden._

_He took a tentative step forward, only to initialize a reaction from Anabel herself. She stepped up and extended her arms as far as she did around her. She seemed determined to prevent him from leaving until she got an explanation to satisfy her inquiry._

"_I have no doubt that you'll make it far in the Champions League with the power you've obtained," Anabel began. "I also have no doubt that you went through…" She took a hesitant gulp, as though swallowing a bitter herb pill. "… horrible things to get to where you are at now."_

"…" _Ash took a stronger step and once more, Anabel reacted._

"_I'm sure whatever happened the past year is none of my business… But my real question is… why?"_

"…" _Ash slowly closed the distance between himself and the Salon Maiden._

"_Please answer my question," Anabel demanded._

"… …" _Ash didn't cease his advancement._

"_Ash!" Anabel called out, becoming desperate._

"… … …"

"_Ash, please!"_

"… … … …_!"_

_As if by an unknown force, the Salon Maiden suddenly stumbled on her feet. Ash slipped by her like a cold phantasm, but not before doing a completely unexpected act of kindness by catching on one of her wrists before she completely fell to the ground. He pulled Anabel securely onto her feet, seemingly looking at her direction before taking his own leave. The Salon Maiden was baffled and depressed about what had just taken place as she watched Ash's retreating figure at the end of the hallway._

"… _Why aren't you letting it go?"_

* * *

Anabel continued to sit in the bench, playing back the events in her head. She overall felt uncomfortable with the entire situation, as though icy fear had gripped onto her heart. However, she was determined not to let it completely interfere with her own participation in the Champions League as her second battle was scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. She also knew Ash's second battle was this time scheduled by end of the week, on Friday morning.

Unbeknownst to her, two formidable figures glanced upon her from a considerable distance in the park. They were not bothered by the other park-goers. The serious young man with purple hair and the composed young woman of dark gray-blue hair were contemplative over the sight of the lone Salon Maiden.

"I still don't get why we're doing this," he said.

"Don't you remember our 'little talk' about a week ago regarding all of this?" she replied evenly. The young man merely looked away in annoyance.

"You still being vague about it," he commented. "So the Salon Maiden of the Kanto Battle Frontier is having a difficult love life. Why should that matter to me in the first place? There is a reason that I haven't bothered too much with relationships in the past and as far as I can see, neither should him."

"You never know, Paul. Just because you've focused on one spectrum on becoming strong doesn't mean you've experienced all of the spectrums under the light. Ash, on the other hand, has ultimately experienced what he lacked the past year, provided that my dissertation on the matter is correct."

"So then, how is toying around with delicate human emotions any different than what I've done in the past with Pokémon?" Paul asked, smirking. "Being the Saffron Gym Leader, you would obviously have the intelligence to figure out such a case."

"While my mind is capable of brilliance beyond the norm, along with powerful psychokinetic powers, I'm still limited in my abilities as a human," Sabrina explained, locking eyes with Paul once more. "I believe what we talked about previously should answer the remainder of your question."

* * *

_Six days ago… again…_

"_I said, 'We need to talk,'" Sabrina stated calmly, glaring eyes glowing light blue while emanating peculiar waves of psychic energy. "Did you not get my mental memo just now?" _

_The recipient of the psychic energy was none too pleased. He found his body to be completely bound and immobile. His posture was stuck, as well as his hands within his pants pockets. Though unable to move his entire body, his head was permitted to turn and face her._

"_W-What do you think you're doing?!" Paul demanded, struggling against the invisible force binding him. "I ought to get Officer Jenny on your case, you psycho!"_

"_What was that?" Sabrina growled threateningly, narrowing her telekinetic glare._

"_Hey!" Paul yelled, suddenly feeling a draft around his legs and knees. Forcing his eyes to look down as far as they could, he discovered that his pants fell to his ankles and was only clad with his undergarments from the waist down. "You're demented, you know that."_

"_I only need your cooperation for a little dissertation I'm working on for a study that I want to major in," Sabrina explained, dimming down her psychic glow. "An apology would be nice for calling me a 'psycho' as well."_

_Paul was released from his psychic hold and immediately fastened his pants back up, not turning to look at the Gym Leader with abrasive persuasiveness until the red in his face faded away._

"_Where's that Haunter that seems to hang around you a lot?"_

"_Last I learned, Haunter wanted to go play in traffic after watching Ash's battle."_

* * *

_Elsewhere on New Island…_

"_What do you mean I'm not allowed to go down there?" a male tourist complained with a small group of other people. "Is there something wrong with the bathroom stalls or something? I really need to go!"_

_A Haunter dressed with a police cap, as well as holding both a whistle and an arrow sign in both hands, continued to gesture the tourist group into a different direction. Begrudgingly, the tourists left into the direction that Haunter wanted them to go to._

"_Stop in the name of the law!" the voice of an Officer Jenny shouted, much to Haunter's surprise. She and her accompanying Growlithe immediately surrounded the Gas Pokémon. "Are you the one causing havoc to these poor tourists?"_

_Haunter merely shrugged with its hands. Officer Jenny was certainly not buying into it._

"_By what authority did you make these tourists leave anyway?" she demanded._

_Haunter pretended to scratch its chin before coming up with some sort of inspiration. It pulled out a large and rather official-looking gold badge from its body to present to the police officer._

"_I don't know about this," Officer Jenny mused, peering closer at it. The gold plate of the large badge suddenly slid up and…_

_*Bam*_

_One custard pie in the face had done it._

"_Haw Haw Haw!"_

* * *

"_Isn't that… dangerous?" Paul inquired skeptically._

"_I know Haunter wouldn't do anything too foolish like anger Officer Jenny over a trivial matter," Sabrina said. Paul shrugged it off, deciding to go back to the proper topic of why Sabrina froze him with her mind._

"_Anyway, what would this 'study' be for?" he asked calmly._

"_I've been recently fascinated with certain forms of psychology, the study of the human mind," Sabrina began. "A couple years ago, I started my studies in a university while still maintaining my position as the Gym Leader of Saffron City. For a while, I was studying about Pokémon psychology under distinctive stimuli, such as those living in the wild, those with Trainers, and even under scenarios such as battling."_

"_How old are you?" Paul interrupted offhandedly._

"_I am less than a couple years older than you, believe it or not, even though I look like I'm twenty-one… Your additional mental comment about me being unnecessarily old as your grandmother is not needed."_

_The Veilstone City Trainer merely smirked. Sabrina brushed it off and didn't remain too conscious of her age for long._

"_As I was saying, I've gotten far in the university at a young age because of my innate superior mental abilities to learn, understand, and memorize," Sabrina continued. "I'm already working on a complex dissertation on how a Pokémon Trainer's relationships with other people can affect their battling. Truth be told, I needed to find the right 'specimen' for my experiment, one that has varied and complex relationships with different people from different regions."_

"_You want Ash," Paul surmised curtly. "By your description, he sounds like the perfect sample to use for your studies. That seems rather underhanded in trying to manipulate him for a university degree, especially at a competition like this." Sabrina shook her head._

"_You misunderstand. I have no plans in sabotaging him or anyone in this tournament, but there is one more relational factor that he's actually missing before I can complete my dissertation."_

"_And that is?"_

"_Love."_

_*Dong*_

"… _You're joking."_

"_Not joking."_

"… _You somehow knocked me out with your psychic powers and I've been dreaming up to this point."_

"_You're still very conscious and awake."_

_Paul was at complete disbelief on what he just heard from the Saffron City Gym Leader. As much as he disliked the idea, he shared the same beliefs as Ash's former traveling companions did concerning the concepts of Ash and romance together: just as nonexistent as the idea of him becoming buddy-buddy and outgoing. It just didn't seem to fit, but then again, two additional factors had to be taken into account now._

_The first was that Ash had demonstrated his complete change from the last time anyone saw him._

_The second was that he proved against the most impossible odds at times, a shining example being the only Trainer known to have defeated both Tobias's Darkrai and Latios in the Lily of the Valley Conference years back before ultimately falling himself._

"_And… how do you expect him to fall in love?" Paul asked, attempting not to snicker at the thought. "I really hope you don't plan on having _me_ to seduce him. I don't like him _that_ much. He has my respect, nothing more and nothing less." Again, Sabrina shook her head._

"_I've already discovered a suitable 'partner' for him," Sabrina said. "I just need you as a lab partner of sorts."_

"_Hmph, you trust me with this kind of responsibility?" Paul questioned cynically. "Like I said, I'm not that close to Ash as you probably have been thinking, and I most likely am not close to whoever you think would be his 'partner,' get it?"_

"_I get you, loud and clear," Sabrina replied calmly. "I also know that you and Ash have shared a powerful bond, not necessarily on the friendliest of terms, since your travels in the Sinnoh region. I know more than you think I do, but I believe that I won't have to force anything unnatural that would disrupt my dissertation."_

"_What makes you say that?"_

"_How about a little incentive? I can help you overcome your own stumbling blocks if you agree to help me with my experiment."_

"_My 'stumbling blocks'?" Paul repeated. "I've got none. My Pokémon are incredibly well-trained and powerful. I certainly don't need help in that department, nor do I plan on getting help from anyone for this tournament."_

"_I haven't specified what exactly you needed help with, but time will reveal what you still need to learn. By then, you'll learn _not _to kick against a Cacturne anymore."_

"_What's that supposed to mean?"_

"_You'll find out," Sabrina replied surreptitiously with an eerie wink. Paul was rarely unnerved, and this moment happened to break that characteristic quite flawlessly._

"_I'll help you if you don't do _that _again," Paul muttered, apparently repulsed before giving in with a big sigh. "And considering that a powerful Psychic Gym Leader wants to throw me a bone, I suppose I can humor her for now." Sabrina nodded in acknowledgment with what appeared to be a small smile on her face._

"_I'll fill you in all the details as the week passes through," Sabrina said as she walked away. "Also, good luck in your battle tomorrow. I'll find what you lack and open your eyes."_

_Paul remained silent as he watched Sabrina take her leave. While he was certain that she'd uphold her promise in figuring out what he still needed to do to ultimately overcome Brandon, he was still weary on what her intentions with him were going to be, if it would actually involve Ash or not._

* * *

"This is ridiculous, just standing out here like freakish stalkers," Paul grumbled while Sabrina still observed the somber Anabel sitting on the bench. "Why can't we just go up to her and tell her to suck it up? It's obvious that he's not interested and is out here to prove that he's the best, same reason I'm out here."

"It's best to keep our interactions limited for now until we can comfortably insert ourselves into her path, keeping it natural," Sabrina explained. "And we can't immediately make that conclusion about Ash. He still doesn't know yet."

"Personally, I have no real reason to suddenly become buddy-buddy with that girl, especially since she's a colleague of Brandon," Paul said, scowling. "I'd rather not get entangled any more than necessary, and besides, they'll find out something's up if _I_ started doing something like that."

"You haven't come to comprehend everything yet," Sabrina stated, amused. "Give it some time and we'll be seeing results and not following basic assumptions."

"I'll give you this, doing a university dissertation while remaining a competitor in the Champions League has to be some record," Paul commented informally. "You also promised to 'help' me in this. I'm still wondering why you've bothered offering, even when you knew how I was going to react. And why do you really plan on helping Anabel in the first place? You're not fooling me that easily and there's probably something more behind that dissertation excuse for your reasons."

"Give it time," Sabrina merely said, still observing Anabel closely. "As for your situation, we'll deal with it after your second battle. That will be your first test."

"Passing the second round? That's a no brainer, of course. Besides, you've already seen more or less of my battle style."

"Like the one where you imitated Ash for your first round battle last week by using only your Torterra and its Stone Edge primarily to knock out all three of your opponent's Pokémon?"

"… Will you stop lamp-shading me like that?"

"Nope. And you do know that if you actually try to ruin my work, I _will_ curse your life into a living hell, worse than having your pants fall in public, right?"

"… Right."

* * *

**I was going to include more flashbacks, such as what supposedly happened with Georgia and Ash from last chapter (if you hadn't already caught that), but I'm still taking it one step at a time. And for forming quite the unlikely alliance, I wonder what Sabrina's motives for using Paul are, along with watching over Anabel… Actually, I already know. It's up for you readers to speculate. There's more than the surface I presented so far, I hope I did well in drawing out the story further.**

**I've also begun noticing a bit of a pattern that whenever AbilityShipping becomes prominent, Paul is also featured as a major character. Probably because he's the rival that pushed Ash the farthest into becoming strong. It's probably just me, but who knows?**

**Anyhoo, it's time to measure up how my writing skills are. Please review!**

**L-ater!**


	8. Surprising Surprises! Georgia vs Iris!

**You'll have to forgive me for finally falling behind what you'd normally expect, but that's life. I suppose it isn't that bad as it could've been another month until I updated again. Anyway, I've probably said this multiple times already, but I'm taking things one step at time so that even I won't lose my place in writing and that I'd easily remember where to go from the last chapter. **

* * *

_The next day…_

The beginning of the week felt rather slow to most people, especially to those that have been currently participating in the festivities of New Island. The fact remained that it was now Tuesday morning regardless of the perception of time that went by. It was no doubt due to the early second round matches of the Champions League being more spread out and with more competent Trainers and their Pokémon enduring all the way to their limits.

And then, there have been those preoccupied with thoughts more important and significant than simply winning the tournament.

Come middle Tuesday morning, Anabel sat at the same wooden bench from yesterday, this time with her Espeon curled up by her feet. Considering that she had a battle later in the early afternoon, she needed the time to mentally concentrate. After all, it's not every day that she would finally face a Gym Leader, not since she left behind her days as a roaming Pokémon Trainer to become the Salon Maiden of the Kanto Battle Frontier almost four years ago. And no less, she would be facing Byron, the Gym Leader stationed at Canalave City of Sinnoh.

Anabel sat motionless, eyes closed and hands upon her lap. Her breathing was steady and her overall posture was relaxed, but firm. Espeon briefly glanced up to her Trainer, having sensed something.

"… …"

"_Ash!"_

Scenes from her last encounter with Ash sprang before her mind's eyes, causing minor discomfort upon further recalling the incident.

"… … …"

"_Ash, please!"_

Anabel felt herself trembling slightly, face tightening under stress. Espeon stood on all fours, looking on while masking her own worry.

"… … … …_!"_

"_Ash… why won't you let it go?"_

That did it.

She opened her eyes within a heartbeat, taking slow, shallow breaths through her mouth. This memory playback kept haunting her. It hadn't been too frequent, only when she was on her own and with nothing else to keep her occupied. It all tied into the fact that her still harboring slightly romantic feelings for the distant Pallet Town Trainer that caused her to worry a bit over him. Of course, she was smart and composed enough not to let those emotions take complete control over her since first hearing about his sudden disappearance over a year ago and was able to continue on her daily life as a Frontier Brain. She was also quick to figure out that he needed to get a lot of experience, both the good and the bad, to ultimately be refined as an incredible Pokémon Trainer; no doubt that a year of training had accomplished the feat for him. But now…

Before her thoughts continued to wander off into Ash's direction, she heard a soft mewl from Espeon. Looking to the Sun Pokémon's direction, the Salon Maiden merely gave a gracious smile in return.

"It's nothing, dear friend," Anabel replied, sensing her apprehension. "Competing in a place like this for the first time in a long time really gets to the nerves."

That was a blatant lie, or rather half-truth. Espeon gave her Trainer a look, to which Anabel could only laugh off. Competition was certainly the least of Anabel's worries now, considering her incredible performance of throwing around her first opponent with her unreadable telepathic battle style.

"Espeon, please stop looking at me like that," Anabel said with an uneasy smile. "You know it's rude to stare. I certainly didn't raise you to be like that, did I?"

"_E-fie_," Espeon mewled back.

"What? I wasn't staring at him. Besides, how could you know? Most of the time, you've either been at our room or in your Poké Ball."

"_Fie…_"

"Psychic… right," Anabel sighed, looking down in defeat as she couldn't even keep Espeon from finding out her own problems. The Sun Pokémon rubbed herself on her leg as an act of comfort. "I apologize, friend, but I didn't want anyone else to be involved with my petty insecurities. But we've been together for a long time, since I started my own journey. I'll find a way with your help this time. That's how it happens, right?"

"_Eifie!_" Espeon cheered.

"I won't give up as long as you don't," Anabel declared resolutely, standing up with renewed vigor. "The Champions League… Lucian… Ash… We'll give it our best and make it out just fine."

Just as she concluded her small moment of inspiration, she and Espeon watched a familiar young man with purple hair walk pass her rather casually, notable for being one of the handful of people she knew to be slightly taller than Ash at this age. Curiosity and courtesy got the best of Anabel as she went after and approached the passing Pokémon Trainer.

"Excuse me, but you're Paul, right?" Anabel inquired. The said young man stopped walking and looked back at her with the same stony look that strangely reminded her of Brandon's usual expressions, which ironically contrasted his older brother's usual demeanor when she first met and battled Reggie.

"That's right," Paul said. "What do you want?" He was certainly not known for beating around the bush, even with the unnecessarily curt responses.

"This kinda sounds like an offhand question to ask you, but have you seen Ash since his battle from last week?"

"No. I'm not as close as you think I would be to him."

"_But it wouldn't hurt you to try to become friends with him,_" Sabrina's persuasive voice whispered in his mind, much to Paul's irritation. Anabel noticed his deepening scowl and didn't want to plow further than she was granted.

"Oh, well sorry to have bothered you then," Anabel murmured rather quickly before turning away. Paul merely raised an eyebrow before calling out to her.

"Hey, if you're that interested in keeping tabs on him, I'd suggest on keeping tabs on his friends," Paul offered in a calmer manner. Anabel looked back towards him as he gestured a thumb in a certain direction towards a grove of forest trees. "I overheard one of them planning to have some field battle over there pretty soon. You could try to get away with some info if you checked it out."

"Do you know who's battling?"

"I overheard the annoying, self-proclaimed Dragon Buster from Unova preparing for a battle she set up with the equally annoying Dragon girl of the group in the Pokémon Center just this morning," Paul explained. "She also happened to mention something about Ash right before she left. I don't what it is, but I have my own training to attend to for my next battle and I really don't care much for their pathetic bout."

"I see," Anabel replied, giving a polite nod to the Veilstone City Trainer. "Thanks for the heads-up."

"Think nothing of it," Paul brushed off with a slight wave before walking away.

"Hey, Paul."

Paul stopped in his tracks, back still turned towards the Salon Maiden.

"I learned much about your character from various sources, including Ash's previous friends while I was with them the first day." Anabel took a brief pause, thinking her next set of words carefully. "I have to say, I really do appreciate how civil you've been to me compared to what others had said about you from before."

Paul still stood silently at his spot as he listened on. The manner on how Anabel called out to him strangely reminded him of his last moment with Ash back at the Lily of the Valley Island over two years ago. Looking back, his desire to battle him again seemed rather childish, but it had been part of Ash's good-natured character to do so. Truth be told, Paul also looked forward to the day they would face off once more in the heat of battle. This time, it was at a competition where the strongest Trainers have been invited to compete in. He kept a small smile to himself once Anabel concluded; she couldn't see it, of course.

"Hm," Paul grunted back before walking away once more.

"As strange as this would sound," Anabel began, looking to her Espeon, "I feel a bit more confident now, even as I confronted Paul with knowledge of his reputation and personality. I'd say he's bit like Brandon with all the seriousness, but with Ash's past influence working slowly on him."

She noted Espeon giving a nod to her statement before swiftly glancing at another direction. Anabel turned as well, spotting the next person she was convinced to confront entering into the grove of trees Paul pointed out earlier: the Dragon Buster known as Georgia.

"Come on, friend!" Anabel beckoned, going in after to where the Dragon Buster went to.

* * *

"It's still not too late for you to back down," Iris taunted, smirking while twirling a fresh red apple in the palm of her hand. "I've gotten what I needed from watching Drake alone last week."

"You think so?" Georgia retorted, smirking back intensely as she pulled out a Poké Ball. "I've been doing extra credit work in terms of taking you and your Dragon Pokémon down. Just last week, I caught the ideal Pokémon here in this forest just to show how helpless you truly are."

"Let me guess. Was it from the night you and your Beartic trained last week before challenging me to this battle?"

"I guess you're really not as primitive as you look if you know what's up."

"You're such a little kid."

The two rivals continued their banter across their makeshift dirt battlefield in the forest grove with only Cilan and Dawn as their spectators, along with one Salon Maiden and her Sun Pokémon both hidden behind a tree from sensing their wild battle tension. They both felt that intruding in now during their amusingly intense rivalry would backfire on them.

"I still wonder on how I was dragged into this," Cilan openly mused.

"Well, Brock went to support Forrest for his second battle today, Misty and May went off on a shopping spree, and Max is going around having random battles with any Trainer he can find," Dawn surmised cheerfully.

"I'm curious on why you didn't join Misty and May as well."

"Please, truth is that shopping sprees can happen at any time," Dawn brushed off. "Besides, it's not every day that you'd see an actual battle between a Dragon Buster and a Dragon Trainer."

"But you watched them go at it once at the Pokémon World Tournament Junior Cup."

"Your point?"

"Never mind," Cilan sighed, stepping forward to the side of the battle with arms held out high. "Alright then, it's battle time!"

"About time we got this started," Georgia remarked.

"Hey, easy on the referee," Iris reprimanded. "He's still my good friend."

"The rules are simple," Cilan announced, acting as the improvised referee. "Both Trainers have one Pokémon to choose for this round. The last one left standing will be declared the winner. Ladies, if you may choose your Pokémon…" The Pokémon Connoisseur finished with a formal gentleman bow.

"Axew, it's time to show Georgia what you're made of!"

Axew leapt out of Iris's hair with an eager yell. Georgia merely smirked at the rather childish display of bravado as she held up her Poké Ball. Anabel and Espeon slowly moved their heads from behind the tree to watch the oncoming battle, curious on the rivalry going on.

"Really now? Axew? Ha!" Georgia taunted. "I was hoping you'd use your Dragonite instead of that little tyke. That way the bigger they are, the harder they'll fall… on you!"

"You're not worth Dragonite's might, not even who your new Pokémon is, whatever it may be," Iris waved off condescendingly while keeping her own rage in check. It was no doubt that Georgia was bound to lose her cool along the way as she begun to sneer.

"You're really asking for it now, girl! This Pokémon definitely gave Beartic a good workout the other day, and trust me on this: you can't begin to comprehend our training regimen!"

"Then stop showing off and send it out already!"

Georgia held herself back, knowing that the Dragon Trainer was right at least on that topic. It was time to put her money where her mouth was with all that big talk. She had a bit of doubts for herself when selecting which Pokémon to use against Iris this day, considering that she would've improved somewhat over the past year. Either way, she wasn't planning on toying around with Axew this time; no doubt the little Tusk Pokémon had grown in his own battle prowess overtime as well.

_I'm counting on you_, Georgia thought as she gave her Poké Ball a final strong glance.

* * *

_Eight days ago at night…_

"_Now Beartic, finish it with Rock Smash!"_

_A worn out and bruised Beartic lumbered forward with a glowing forepaw, using the remainder of its strength to knock out its foe. The opposing Pokémon bounced against a tree from receiving the final impact, dazed with spiraled eyes and immobile. A Poké Ball was then tossed at it, converting its entire body into bright red energy, which greatly contrasted against the forest darkness of night, and promptly absorbed it. A few spasms of the device occurred as the Poké Ball remained on the ground, ultimately culminating with a bright white sparkling ring released from the center button._

"_Looks like you're now mine," Georgia remarked, smirking in triumph. "If my research is true, then you definitely should be more than a match for little Iris. Guess it was meant for us to be to find you this late at night." _

_Putting away her newly caught Pokémon, as well as recalling her Beartic, the Dragon Buster was ready to call it a night. She knew that she would have to be up and early if she wanted to catch the preliminary battle between Clair and Candice tomorrow morning. Watching a Dragon-type specialist battle had often been on top of her to-do list, especially if it was against an Ice Trainer._

_As Georgia was about to leave the forest…_

_A blast of electricity flew into the sky. The sudden burst of power rippling through along with the noisy crackle caught the Dragon Buster off guard. Georgia nearly stumbled on her feet as she saw the bolt of lightning completely dissipate into the sky. Naturally, curiosity and stubbornness to uphold her pride outweighed fear, thus drawing her into the source of where the mass electricity erupted._

_She tiptoed in caution, feeling irritated and muttering a minor swear every time she wound up stepping on a fallen leaf or on a stray twig, crunching them under her boots and making quite the conspicuous sound that would draw attention unto her. As the Dragon Buster arrived at the clearing, she caught a sight she'd never consider up to this point._

_Georgia found the one Trainer that her rival, Iris, and her little group were completely anxious to reunite with. _

_The young man with the red cap appeared to be training his Pikachu against another of his Pokémon, as Georgia was able to make out in spite of the low visibility from the darkness. She couldn't recognize the second Pokémon as she never saw it under Ash's possession back at Unova, but was able to determine from the silhouette casted under the dim moonlight that it was big, definitely bigger than Ash._

"… … _Agility… again!"_

_Pikachu had appeared to fumble at the start for half a second before resuming the command, building up his speed to the point that blurred blue afterimages that imitated his movements were left in his wake. _

"_Pikachu must have just learned Agility," Georgia voiced her thoughts somewhat inaudibly._

_Georgia was silently in awe for the little Pokémon, taking on an opponent that could possibly be eight times his size and might likely be a Dragon-type, if not some random beast; the former she wasn't one-hundred percent sure, but regardless, she had to give credit where credit was due._

_Ash glanced at the direction of his second Pokémon expectedly. The large Pokémon released what appeared to be Flamethrower, but in the form of a very narrow and focused column. The flame stream easily tore into the ground with intensity similar to Hyper Beam. It tried to chase after Pikachu, but the Mouse Pokémon had proven to be very elusive. The afterimages were erased upon contact from the Flamethrower, revealing the real Pikachu to have leapt high in the air over his opponent._

"… _Electro Ball!"_

_Almost instantly, Pikachu charged the attack around his tail. The electrical orb appeared to have matched his body size, completely overtaking the tail within one swirl. Pikachu then dove down and flung the Electro Ball at his opponent with blinding speed, just as his opponent barely reacted by bracing its arms up to absorb the attack. The Electro Ball still made a significant explosion upon contact and sent the opponent sliding back on its feet before being caught by a tree trunk. _

_Georgia had to admit to herself that she impressed with the short scene of training, from Pikachu learning Agility to his opponent's impressive defense. Unfortunately, as she got lost in her thoughts, she barely noticed that Ash was facing her direction as he recalled his other Pokémon, leaving Pikachu to take his place on his Trainer's shoulder._

"_Shoot!" Georgia cursed to herself in a whisper._

_Being confronted the way she was now didn't look good for her reputation, to be caught as random stalker fan one. By instinct, she thought to bury herself further into the forest foliage, hoping that Ash would overlook her and move on. Truth be told, she doubted that, considering that his Pikachu could easily hone in on her scent if necessary. However, another part of her wanted to openly confront him and appeal to him somehow. The last thing her pride would allow her to do would be to run away like a coward. So she decided to do the foolishly brave thing to do._

"_That's right, you caught me here," Georgia announced openly, raising her hands up in surrender and entering the clearing where Ash stood. "But don't think it was because I wanted to see you or anything like that."_

"… …" _Ash said nothing, though as far as his visible expression would go, he'd appear rather perplexed. "… …?" He felt the familiar, but bothersome sensation occurring in his stomach. He stayed out too late apparently if he was now feeling his classic hunger pangs. _

"_Anyway, it looks like great minds think alike as I happened to have finished training my Pokémon at another part of this forest," Georgia continued, allowing herself to become comfortable in Ash's presence. "I even caught myself a new Pokémon here. I can show you what it is since I did watch a part of your training. You don't need to worry about me spilling any of your secrets though. I have no gain from them, though I am curious about one thing. What was that other Pokémon that Pikachu was training with?"_

_Before she even registered her surroundings, Ash had already left the forest clearing. Much to her shock, she looked around in several directions before spotting Ash's fleeting figure disappearing into the forest trees. That, no doubt, struck a sensitive nerve on Georgia's pride on how she disliked being ignored as so._

"_Hey! I wasn't done with you!" Georgia yelled out into the empty forest space, listening to her own irate voice echo through the trees. "You're supposed to snub Iris, not me! I'll show you!"_

_No answer. Georgia frowned and puffed her cheeks rather comically, if anyone else was around to even notice it._

"_That boy's got style, I'll admit," Georgia pondered to herself, a scheming grin expanding on her face. "I think I just found a new way to one-up Iris. He'll be perfect for this."_

* * *

Reflecting back from the past week's experience, Georgia was more than eager to prove her superiority over her Dragon rival. The Dragon Buster was planning to reveal her new arsenal this day.

"Here we go! Show yourself!"

Georgia flung the Poké Ball high into the air, opening up and releasing in a bright flash the mystery Pokémon the Dragon Buster had boasted about. The bright energy took form upon landing on the ground as a small and round Pokémon with large round eyes, one that which caught everyone completely off guard.

"_Jiggly!_" the Pokémon squeaked daintily.

"_That's_ your super Pokémon?!" Iris scoffed, covering her mouth to hold back a huge wave of laughter.

"Aww, so cute!" Dawn chirped up, gushing over Georgia's new Pokémon, much to Piplup's annoyed jealousy.

"Jigglypuff are native to the Kanto region, but I'll definitely need to see how this one acts in battle in order to perform a proper evaluation," Cilan commented.

"That's right, laugh it up, Iris," Georgia goaded, her smirk not leaving despite Iris and Axew's laughter. "What you don't know about this Jigglypuff will certainly be your greatest downfall." Iris immediately straightened herself and ceased laughing.

"If your plan was to make me laugh into defeat, you'll have to do better than that," Iris retorted back. "Just because Ash got lucky with his Gym Battle with Sabrina here in Kanto years ago doesn't mean you have the same luck. What a kid way to win a battle."

"Well, if there aren't any further objections, then this one-way round will be Jigglypuff versus Axew!" Cilan declared, giving out the formal referee signals. "Let the battle begin!"

"Iris, why don't you go first?" Georgia offered.

"Big mistake!" Iris taunted. "Axew, start off with Slash!"

Axew raised a hand up, extending out sharp glowing claws from his little fingertips. Upon reaching the desired state of full power, the Tusk Pokémon ran forward towards his opponent in an attempt to swipe. Axew leapt up before reaching Jigglypuff, rearing back his Slash for a strong impact.

"Jigglypuff, dodge and use Pound!"

The Balloon Pokémon easily rolled backward, evading the incoming Slash as it instead raked upon the dirt. Jigglypuff stood up after the roll, storing up strength into a stubby arm, which then glowed as bright white as Axew's Slash did. Jigglypuff then ran forward and hopped a couple of times for extra momentum. Axew was still recovering from his missed Slash, unable to react quickly enough to avoid the powered-up slap and crescent-shaped trail of energy that followed the initial swipe.

"Axew! Are you alright?" Iris yelled, watching her Axew getting thrown back from the impact. Axew shook off his weariness from Pound, ready to continue battling as he resumed a stance. "Alright! Use Dragon Rage!"

The Tusk Pokémon drew in his draconic power, bright navy blue energy glowing from his abdomen. Axew then opened his mouth, the visible blue energy orb appearing as large and round as his stomach. The erratically swirling energies emerged from his mouth, blazing about as it took form into a fierce looking dragon silhouette. Upon Axew's command, the Dragon Rage flew out and crawled its way towards Jigglypuff, who appeared to be scared to move away.

"Jigglypuff, what are you doing?! Dodge it!"

Upon hearing Georgia, Jigglypuff hopped away at the last second as the Dragon Rage dove down to where the Balloon Pokémon originally stood. The impact of the Dragon Rage blew up dust in the air, reducing visibility on Georgia's side of the battle. The Dragon Buster watched her Pokémon hover in place after being slightly knocked back by the resulting shockwaves. Axew had suddenly jumped out of the dust cloud with another Slash attack ready to go, much to their surprise.

"Axew, go for it!"

"Jigglypuff, counter with Pound!"

In midair, the two little Pokémon exchanged blows. Instead of their physical attacks attempting to cancel out one another, they instead slammed against their respective opponents. Axew was thumped in the stomach while Jigglypuff received a vicious swipe to the face by a pair of lengthen claws. Both Pokémon landed on their backs before taking a few seconds to get back on their feet by the wild encouragement of their Trainers.

"Axew, you've got this! Let's finish them off with Giga Impact!"

"_Xew…_" Axew moaned, seemingly swaying about in place.

"Axew? What's wrong?" Iris called out. She took a glance at Dawn's reaction, which told of not very good news at all. "Oh no, Axew!"

"Cilan, is Axew…?" Dawn asked, but didn't finish her question as she knew that Cilan saw it as well.

"It's true: Axew's been infatuated," Cilan said, staying as impartial as he could as part of being the referee.

Axew swayed back and forth rather goofily with an equally ridiculous smile to match. One could even note that Valentine hearts had replaced the Tusk Pokémon's eyes. Poor little Axew was all lovey-dovey over his opponent.

"But that could only mean… Jigglypuff has the Ability, Cute Charm!" Iris deduced, glaring heatedly at her haughty rival. "That also means that Jigglypuff's a girl. Oh, man."

"About time you finally caught on," Georgia mocked. "The only reason that I didn't want Jigglypuff to be hit directly was to prolong this battle. Honestly, it just became too easy now that Axew's in love with her and not with you. Ha!"

"We'll see about that! Axew, Giga Impact! Let's go!"

No response from Axew. The Tusk Pokémon was immobilized by love.

"I think I'll continue torturing you for a bit. Jigglypuff, use Sing!"

"_~ Jig-galie-puff Jig-galie-alie-puff ~_"

Jigglypuff sang on command a rather sweet and soothing lullaby. Vibrant, multicolored music notes began emerging out of the Balloon Pokémon's mouth as she continued singing her lullaby. A stray golden-yellow eighth note floated over towards the love-struck Axew and exploded into sparkles upon contact with his head. Axew promptly yawned and collapsed onto his stomach, fast asleep.

"Oh, come on!" Iris cried out. "Axew, get up! Wake up!"

"Let's see if you like this next move," Georgia intervened. "Ice Beam!" Iris blanched and gaped upon hearing the called out attack.

Jigglypuff took in a deep breath, slightly inflating herself up as the light blue energy of Ice Beam formed in front of her mouth into an ample orb. As she exhaled, three crooked beams were expelled out of the orb and struck upon the sleeping Tusk Pokémon. The impact created a minor blast that sent the still sleeping Axew into the air with ice coated completely on his head fin. While Axew still remained asleep upon landing back on the ground, he was seen notable shivering from the frigid cold with his closed eyes wrinkled tightly in pain.

"Axew, no!"

"You know, Jigglypuff isn't only formidable against Axew just because of her Ice Beam," Georgia began, earning another glare from the Dragon Trainer.

"What?!"

"Don't you remember me mentioning on how I've been doing research on finding more effective ways in taking down Dragon-types? It's time to reveal the fruits of my discovery by finishing off your little Axew!"

"Cilan, what does she mean that she found a new way on taking down Dragon-type Pokémon?" Dawn asked.

"Honestly, I can't say, but I feel like the time to evaluate is on its way once Georgia reveals her trump card," Cilan replied, looking at the beaten Axew asleep on the ground. "Let's just hope Axew can survive another big hit."

"Check this out, Iris!" Georgia called out in triumph. "Jigglypuff, use Moonblast!"

"What?!" Iris cried out.

The attack that Georgia called out was completely unfamiliar with Iris, Dawn, and Cilan as they each displayed complete shock at the foreign move. Anabel overheard the move from where she hid and was fully aware of the new discovery that Georgia was about to unleash upon her rival. She still looked on, greatly worried for Axew if he even had a chance to survive the oncoming attack.

Jigglypuff began to gather a peculiar form of energy in front of her, between her stubby arms. It formed into a small orb that shone as pearly white as the moon itself, living up to the attack namesake, while giving off glittering dust that one would expect to find being used by a fictional character in a little girl's fairy tale story book. At least, that was what the first impression gave itself off to be.

"_Puff!_" Jigglypuff shouted mightily as she lobbed the bright moonlike orb at Axew. It also notably left a trail of twinkle dust in its wake.

"Axew, get up!" Iris shouted at the top of her lungs desperately.

"… _Xew!_" Axew grunted, sharply opening his eyes and seeing the oncoming Moonblast heading towards his way. "_Ax!_"

The Tusk Pokémon managed to stagger away from the attack right as it struck the spot where he originally slept despite the effects of Cute Charm's infatuation taking over his senses once more upon waking up. The moon orb exploded and released several brilliant shockwaves that appeared to sear Axew, leaving noticeable black burn marks on his skin, much to Iris's horror. Axew lumbered in pain and appeared ready to collapse completely this time.

"Lucky escape," Georgia fumed, tightening her fists before relaxing herself upon realizing the aftermath. "Oh, well, at least Axew got a taste of that super effective attack, even if it wasn't a direct hit."

"'Super effective'?! What are you going about now?!" Iris demanded. "What kind of move was that anyway?"

"That Moonblast attack is part of a newly discovered Pokémon type from a faraway place called the Kalos region," Georgia explained, catching everyone's complete attention. "Much like how Steel and Dark-type Pokémon were first revealed in the Johto region before making themselves known in other regions shortly after, this new type was just discovered in the Kalos region upon experimenting with certain Pokémon, Jigglypuff being one of them."

"Jigglypuff are known to be Normal-type," Dawn brought out. "What other type could they be now?"

"This one's called the 'Fairy-type' as of recently," Georgia concluded with a victorious grin and wagging finger.

"Hold on!" Iris interrupted. "There's no way an attack like that could've severely damaged Axew like that. What's the deal?!"

"I was wondering when you'd ask," Georgia goaded. "See, Fairy-type attacks are super effective against Dragon-type Pokémon, thus giving your 'high-and-mighty' beasts another deficient weakness to cower against next to Ice-types and their own kind."

"No way! I refuse to believe that load of baloney!"

"Scared of a little pixie dust, aren't we? The proof is all upon Axew, who looks like he didn't take that attack well."

Iris seethed, unable to take in the fact that fairy tale magic somehow overwhelmed completely her specialized Pokémon type. She even looked up to fairy tales at one point at her early childhood life. Axew was struggling to stand at this point, even as he dealt with the condition of infatuation that was inflicted upon him from Jigglypuff's Cute Charm. He was practically holding on by a thread.

"I'm not giving up, not even to twinkling fairy dust!" Iris declared boldly. The thought of fairy dust suddenly reminded her on how ice crystal twinkled and glittered, sending a horrifyingly cold shiver down her spine. _Okay… Now I see how they're weaknesses for Dragon-types._

"Let's see if you'll give up to this one. Use Moonblast again!"

"Axew, use Outrage!"

The fury in Iris's voice managed to reach out to Axew this time as the Tusk Pokémon gave off a menacing growl in response. A bright aura of blood red emanated from Axew's little body, frightening enough to shatter the lovey-dovey hearts in his eyes and replaced with hateful, blank red pupils. Georgia stumbled back from dread, watching the accursed Dragon-type move come into play.

"_Ax… Ax-Ax!_" Axew growled, stampeding forward with surprising swiftness.

The Tusk Pokémon almost instantaneously appeared right in front of Jigglypuff as she was still charging up another Moonblast. Axew sent a violent uppercut up Jigglypuff's body, disrupting her own attack. He then continued on his brutal barrage of melee attacks on the helpless Balloon Pokémon midair. Axew then completed the first round of his draconic rampage with a swift roundhouse kick to the side, sending Jigglypuff bouncing along into a tree.

However, Jigglypuff had enough strength left to catch herself by landing on her feet upon reaching the tree trunk and softly leaping off of it. She then watched as Axew furiously dove in after her to finish the job himself.

"Jigglypuff, Moonblast!"

Suspecting her Trainer to call out that attack again, Jigglypuff used the remainder of her strength in quickly forming up the Fairy-type attack. The moon orb reached full size and was ready to be launched. She leapt up into the air to meet up against Axew, intending to shove the Moonblast directly into him by her own hand. In retaliation for the oncoming Balloon Pokémon, Axew threw in a brutal jab of his own against the Moonblast. This, of course, resulted in an explosion greater than the previous one.

Axew was the first seen to be thrown out of the explosion's haze and back onto his side of the field, lying on his stomach with spiraling eyes. Jigglypuff followed after, landing on her back with a soft plop in front of her Trainer's feet, eyes also spiraled and dazed.

"I'm calling it in," Cilan announced, raising both arms in the air. "Both Axew and Jigglypuff are unable to battle! This match is a draw!"

"…!" Both Iris and Georgia gasped as they went to tend to their fainted Pokémon.

"Axew, you did great," Iris praised her little Pokémon gently, cradling him in her arms. "I'm really proud on how much you've grown." Axew gave a weak, but cheerful smile in return.

"Jigglypuff, you were awesome in showing up Iris the way you did," Georgia whispered amiably to the Balloon Pokémon upon recalling her into her Poké Ball. "We'll get a solid win out of her next time."

"What a great battle," Dawn commented; both she and Piplup remained captivated from watching it.

"Well, Iris, as much as I hate to admit, you took my element of surprise quite well," Georgia spoke up as Iris approached her with Axew in her arms. "Considering how Axew's still in his baby stage, I don't really plan on counting that battle."

"Wow, _another_ excuse to save your sorry hide," Iris remarked acidly. "How about you learn to take a loss like a woman instead of like a kid?" Before she could go on, the Dragon Buster held up a hand in front of her, much to Iris's confusion.

"Look, Axew still has a long way to go, especially if he wants to become a Haxorus one day. I wouldn't take it easy just because he managed to turn the battle into a draw."

"Georgia…"

There was some truth in Georgia's derisive criticisms and mockery that even Iris had to acknowledge. For someone that wanted her rival to continue to grow stronger, Iris felt inwardly flattered in spite of the hard time and stress they both gave one another in terms of who was better or who was more irritating. Georgia gave a soft exhale before resuming her trademark confident smirk.

"Now just because you now know my hidden trick doesn't mean you'll survive against it next time. There's still a lot about the Fairy-type that you and anyone else here don't know about. I'll be the first to find out everything about it so that I'll completely destroy you the next time we battle."

"We'll just see about that, Georgia," Iris agreed with an equal smirk, their rivalry sparking brightly between their stares.

"It looks like both Iris and Georgia have newfound respect for each other now," Dawn added, standing from her log seat. "I really can't wait to see their next battle."

"They're two rivals that consistently push each other to the limit, in more ways than one," Cilan said. "But after seeing that battle and Georgia's new Jigglypuff, it's time." The Pokémon Connoisseur took a familiar pose, much to all the girls' embarrassment. "More specifically, it's evaluating time!"

"This is going to be about Jigglypuff, isn't it?" Georgia questioned sardonically.

"You sure don't hold back," Dawn uttered with a laugh, glancing at a certain distance where she heard a bit of ruffling movement in the forest foliage. "Is someone there?"

* * *

_Back in the park…_

Anabel and Espeon stepped out of the bushes once the battle they previously watched in hiding had ended. It didn't feel right to intrude in even as the rival battle finished and the battlers exchanged their usual competitive banter. They felt somewhat bad as it was for basically acting like spies on them, watching them in secret while making sure their own cover wasn't discovered.

"We'll confront Georgia later on," Anabel said to her friend. "She seems to have plenty on her hands right now. And besides…"

Espeon looked up imploringly to her Trainer. The Salon Maiden looked forward with a confident smile.

"We have a battle to prepare soon."

* * *

**Just so you all know and bear in mind if you hadn't already, this story isn't going to stay Ash-centric. Just as the summary said, this story is focusing on the growths on how far every present Trainer have made it since starting the Pokémon path. But of course, Ash's growth is very central to the story, which is why I've been taking time drawing him out while everyone else's stories seems to be instantly revealed, even with non-competitors like Georgia and Iris. If you want another thing to ponder about Ash now, then try to solve Georgia's question from the flashback. What new Pokémon **_**did**_** he use to train Pikachu?**

**Additionally, I've been meaning to introduce Fairy-type into the story at some point, whether the anime had already done so or not. And I had a bit of fun writing out this battle. I don't know if Jigglypuff will actually learn Moonblast, but it was a good assumption regardless. I also thought about having Georgia's Jigglypuff as the recurring Jigglypuff from the original season, the one with the marker microphone, while I wrote the chapter. But a couple of things came to mind: I just don't have the heart to subject that Jigglypuff into a life of battling; she's meant to become a diva, she just couldn't find the right audience at the time. And number two, I have possible plans for her in the future, but we'll see eventually. **

**Speaking of battling, can you figure out who's battling next chapter? Clues have been at the beginning and at the end of this chapter. That's basically what I'm going to do since I can at least throw you guys a bone for going all over the place with different characters and their problems popping up everywhere.**

**It's time to measure up my writing skills. Time to review!**

**L-ater!**


	9. Hardheaded Clash! Anabel vs Byron!

**Well, most of you already figured out that Anabel is going to battle from the previous chapter. You are correct. And her opponent also mentioned very briefly last chapter is Gym Leader Byron, if you had caught that as well. Now let's see how that'll go down.**

**Again, another note, this time concerning my general author notes before and after on a chapter: they're not exactly set in stone, though I did promise this battle. Most other ideas and suggestions I throw out there are for you to consider and give me feedback on for later chapters. While I do know how this will end, the journey along the way makes things all the more… interesting. I'm still very grateful for your reviews and feedback and couldn't wish for awesome readers like you. **

**Also, are you all sure there isn't anything I've been missing out or been making an error of in my writing? I'm not going to leave out mistakes on purpose for you to spot as even I know I'm not going to be perfect. I'm bound to drop the ball somewhere. We'll see.**

* * *

"Ladies and gentleman, especially all you Pokémon fans out there, the Pokémon League hopes that you are all enjoying the ongoing festivities and battles so far," the voice of the commentator of the rock field announced enthusiastically.

"YEAH!" the audience roared back along with other cheers mixed in.

"We're still early in the second week, but things are just heating up! We have to applaud the competitors of the previous round in the rock field for an incredible battle and remember the great victory that Gym Leader Forrest of Pewter City pulled out with his Rhyperior."

Once more, various spectators around the rock field stadium went up with loud cheers following the last statement.

"Now with the rock field cleaned up and refreshed during the thirty-minute intermission, we can get on the way with the next scheduled battle!"

As if on cue, the competing Trainers entered in from the sides within the arena and took up their prospective place at the mountainous battlefield. Both stood tall, poised with steadfast confidence to enter into battle. The spectators gave another roaring applause and wave of cheers for the new competitors and with good reason for it considering who's now taking the field.

"Folks, it looks like we have another celebrity battle for this round," the commentator spoke up. "Representing the left side of the field is the man with a steel body who's not afraid to speak his mind, Gym Leader Byron of Canalave City. Though like Gym Leader Roark, his son who's still ongoing in the Champions League now, he is really from Oreburgh City!" Cheers erupted once again, more specifically for the fans for the Sinnoh Steel Gym Leader.

"Kanto's a mighty fine place to visit explore!" Byron shouted in the air, swinging his trademark shovel around proudly as to wave back to his fans. "Though I have to say, my most favorite feature here in this region is Grampa Canyon, having been reopened up for more fossil exploration. I love fossils!" _*Boom*_ "And now… I love Grampa Canyon!" _*Boom*_

"Oh, Dad…" Roark sighed, watching his father show off from the front row. He was starting to wish that his earlier battle lasted after the start of his father's.

"Now introducing Byron's opponent, she is quite the notable and formidable figure in the Kanto region as a Frontier Brain, now this is a treat for today," the commentator continued. "Born and raised in Verdanturf Town of the Hoenn region, placed in charge of the Kanto Battle Tower in Tohjo Falls, and having an older brother in the Sinnoh Elite Four in the figure of the great Lucian, give it up for the fair Salon Maiden, Anabel!"

An equally loud wave of cheers erupted after her big introduction. Anabel stood firmly, not undaunted with the excessive amount of people surrounding and watching her. The only thing that did seem to bother her somewhat was the constant repetition of her relation with her superstar of an older brother; it felt like it was mentioned over a hundred times to her since the whole thing began. It got old really quickly for her, but apparently not for the crowd.

* * *

Sitting at the second-to-front row behind the referee's side were Brock, May, and Max, out of their whole group, to watch Anabel's match.

"I've wanted to see Anabel's battle last week, but I forgot when and where it was," May mumbled apologetically.

"It was at the grass field Wednesday afternoon last week against a Trainer named Dino," Max said, adjusting his glasses with an arrogant flair. May started to frown; Max was being a know-it-all with her again. "Supposedly, Dino was the runner-up from the Unova Vertress Conference a couple years back, same time when Ash competed. But Anabel completely led him along on a leash with her unreadable style in their battle, barely having to use her whole team for the job."

"I get it, Max!" May hissed back. "Just because you were able to watch her battle when I couldn't doesn't mean that you have the right to rub it in at every waking moment."

"Actually, it wasn't just Anabel's battle you missed, sister dear," Max continued snidely with a huge grin. "You also missed Forrest's battle, both last week and today, Cilan's last week battle, not to mention Sabrina's match back then, and don't forget, there's also−."

"I said _that's enough_!"

"Calm down, children," Brock intervened, placing his arms between the siblings and keeping them at a distance. "What's done is done now. Let's just see how Anabel handles this battle against Byron since he'll probably be quite a challenge with his powerful defense."

"Brock, you watched Ash battle him in Sinnoh," May said, having cooled down quickly from her sibling tiff. "What's Byron like?"

"He specializes in Steel-type Pokémon and uses their incredible defensive powers to wear out his opponents before striking back hard," Brock explained, facing the battlefield. "Against Anabel's ability to relay her commands telepathically, I can already tell that this battle's going to be very interesting."

"All I found interesting was how Anabel's related to Lucian of the Elite Four," Max added. "I never would've guessed the family resemblance."

"You could probably see more of it once you meet him."

"Wait… You met Lucian? Where? When?!"

"Guys, shush!" May scolded. "They're about to begin!"

* * *

"This match will be a three-on-three battle with no time limit," the referee began. "Substitutions are allowed for both Trainers. The first to knock out all three of his or her opponent's Pokémon will move on to the next round. Trainers, please select your first Pokémon!"

"This is going to be fun," Byron commented gruffly, winding his arm back for the throw. "I'm not going easy on you just because you appear to be a little girl, especially since I know how much you love to battle, Frontier Brain. Almost as much as I… love Bastiodon!"

Byron's first Pokémon landed on the rocky terrain with a loud thump, causing some debris to rise up inches from the ground. Bastiodon appeared as sturdy and impassive as ever, particularly towards Anabel's direction. The Salon Maiden made no expression in regards to the Shield Pokémon, but smiled back once her first Poké Ball was on hand.

"At least someone knows that I'm a girl," Anabel muttered, ready to release her Pokémon into the battlefield. "While you may have some… gentlemanly qualities to you, they're not going to give you an edge in this battle. Go, my friend!"

Anabel lobbed her Poké Ball high in the air, releasing in a brilliant light the Mysterious Pokémon that took form in a large violet sea star with a second star attached to its back. Its most notable feature was the bright red jewel located at the core of its body held in place by a sort of golden piece, shining brightly with the sunlight of the afternoon sun reflecting off of it.

"I didn't know Anabel had a Starmie," May commented from the side, pulling out her Pokédex to look up Starmie's recorded information for herself.

"I figured that my usual Pokémon won't put much of a dent in your ultimate defenses so a nice changeup in my lineup should throw you into a loop," Anabel said with a smirk, to which Byron grinned back.

"It looks like the first match will be Bastiodon versus Starmie," the commentator announced. "I find it questionable for Byron to already send out one of his signature Pokémon at the beginning of a match, but it looks like he doesn't plan on holding back. Let's see if Anabel can pierce through his powerful Steel defense."

"The battle may begin now!" the referee declared, raising one flag in the air with the other in the Salon Maiden's direction. "Anabel gets the first move."

"Let's see how sturdy Bastiodon really is. Starmie, use Psyshock!"

Starmie immediately reacted, indicated by its radiating jewel, by conjuring up a large and bright fiery mass of shades varying under blue and violet in front of its body. With a peculiar chirping noise echoing from it, the Mysterious Pokémon released the potent Psyshock after aiming into the center of Bastiodon's face.

"Bastiodon, Iron Defense!"

The Shield Pokémon stayed in its place firmly, bracing for the coming Psychic attack. With a guttural growl, Bastiodon raised its defenses up. Its entire body illuminated with a light blue color before being coated in what appeared to be iron, complimented with a lustrous metallic sheen. The Iron Defense maneuver was prominent with Bastiodon's large head as the Psyshock broke apart and dissolved away completely upon colliding with it. Anabel frowned at the ineffectual attempt.

"Folks, what else can be said about Byron's Bastiodon?" the commentator brought up. "That's one absolute defense, for sure! But don't count Anabel out just yet! The first turn is over and now we'll see their true powers in battle."

* * *

_At another part of the rock field stadium…_

"That first move was pathetic and a waste," Paul remarked darkly before sitting up straight. "It didn't even properly gauge Bastiodon's defense."

"Don't make such brutal assumptions just because you know all the technicalities of the moves used in the first turn," Sabrina advised. "While it's true that Psyshock is a special Psychic move that contrasts against the opposing Pokémon's regular defense instead of its special defense, that display was only part the first turn."

Paul turned away, eyes closed and smirking rather coolly.

"If you're trying to tell me that she's trying to lure Byron into a false sense of security, then she'll have to do better than that. This is Byron she's dealing with, a man that's practically _nuts_ with defense. I'll admit that even I had a rough challenge against him for my eighth Sinnoh Badge. But even the 'absolute defense' would come down after a good number of powerful strikes and blows to the side. He was certainly tougher than his son, I'll give him that."

"Once Anabel gets into the battle more, you'll be surprised on how she fights," Sabrina said with a cryptic smile. "She can probably even give you a run for your money at this stage."

Paul glared at her and scowled again.

"She's no Brandon, but she does deserve some respect to a degree," he admitted before glancing back to the battle. "Why she even wants to get involved with Ash, I'm not going to bother understanding. I doubt anything's going to change from it." The Veilstone City Trainer then felt a soft hand on his shoulder; he immediately knew it was Sabrina… this time.

"Your unbelief… it continues to cloud your mind and interfere with your judgment," Sabrina surmised sagaciously. "I find it amusing on how every time the topic of Anabel comes up, it always goes back to Brandon for you."

"What's it to you?"

"I promise to help remove your stumbling blocks once you complete your second round battle as part of my gratitude to you for helping me with my ongoing dissertation."

"Hmph…" Paul grunted in response, several things coming to mind after Sabrina spoke.

"I have nothing else to say to you aside from the truth that was already spoken from my mouth," Sabrina continued calmly. Paul's scowl deepened as he knew she was reading his mind again. "You claim that I have ulterior motives for helping you, Anabel, and Ash at an indirect stance… but all I have to say now is that it's up to time to vindicate the truth."

"Whatever that means," Paul added in a low whisper.

Though she left her hand on his shoulder, Sabrina suddenly felt the impulse to search around from her seat, noticing something was amiss.

"Where'd Haunter go now?"

* * *

"What'd I tell ya!" Byron chuckled. "It'll be fun watching you try and get around Bastiodon. The best defense makes the perfect offense!"

"While I have to agree with you at that aspect, I'm afraid that I cannot let you win this match," Anabel replied determinedly, to which the Canalave City Gym Leader grinned back.

"Your steely resolve is admirable. Bastiodon is one considered a pride and joy on my team, so I'm not going to make this easier for you. I love Bastiodon!" _*Boom*_ "And… I love defense!" _*BOOM*_

"Oh my…" Anabel gasped, covering her mouth with her hands completely while notably blinking in succession as response to Byron's ham confidence.

What not even she could catch was that in a secluded corner at their arena, a Haunter wearing a yellow hard hat eagerly held up a small dynamite plunger box, ready to push the lever down when the moments came around.

"These two are just getting started, folks!" the commentator went on, amidst the cheers of various spectators. "How will Anabel respond to Bastiodon's Iron Defense?"

"Let's try this again," Anabel mumbled to herself, having formulated a new plan of attack on mind. "Starmie, into the air and use Psyshock again!"

Starmie spun and floated into the air with use of the second star attached on its back. It gained a few meters above the ground. With its vibrant red jewel facing Bastiodon once more, Starmie formed its attack. However, this time, the Mysterious Pokémon conjured five fiery masses of psychic energy over each tip of its body that circulated around its core. This new tactic seemingly caught Byron and Bastiodon off guard as Starmie released its Psyshock, this time scattering the attack instead of one big attack to defend against.

"Bastiodon, Iron Defense again!"

Bastiodon tensed up and increased its defensive power into a higher level, once more coated in a metallic shine for a moment. It raised its head up to block the oncoming Psyshock blasts, successfully stopping three of them. One managed slip past Bastiodon's face and struck its less armored back. The last Psyshock blob strayed away and struck the ground in front, which created a big explosion of dust and debris that shrouded a good portion on Anabel's side from its vision.

"Good job, Bastiodon! Now it's time to counterattack with Iron Head!"

The Shield Pokémon had then crouched on its legs, preparing to leap up to where it last saw Starmie. At the same time, its entire head only illuminated that familiar metallic sheen. With a fierce roar, it leapt high into the air and through the cloud of debris from the previous attack. Bastiodon's eyes had then widened in astonishment upon discovering Starmie's disappearance on the other side. Byron also noticed it as well.

Bastiodon then heard that peculiar chirping noise coming from behind it in midair.

_Now use Scald!_

Starmie straightened itself vertically in the air, pointing the top appendage of its body towards Bastiodon. A source of water, notably with scorching steam, formed from the tip and was pressurized into a large, but narrowed stream. The Scald struck Bastiodon from behind, to which the Shield Pokémon roared in great pain from the super effective hit. The burning Water attack pushed it back to the battlefield, more specifically at a miniature rock peak.

"What just happened?!" Byron shouted. "Was that Scald?"

Much of the watching audience was caught off guard from the sudden attack. Brock, May, and Max were still in awe on how Anabel managed to maneuver Bastiodon the way she wanted it to. Paul didn't bother looking in Sabrina's direction as he certainly did not want to see her smug satisfaction of being right over him again. And everyone else simply watched on, pretty much riled up for Anabel's counterattack at this point.

"The trick's out of the bag now, folks, as Anabel's revealed her Starmie's Scald attack without even vocally commanding it," the commentator noted. "She's getting into the battle now, just like her first preliminary match with Dino. We're witnessing once again her unique ability to relay commands to her Pokémon telepathically. What we see from the normally sweet Salon Maiden is truly a devious mastermind."

Anabel felt the heat of embarrassment rising into her face from the commentator's words.

"Bastiodon, get up!" Byron called out. "I know that you can withstand a small attack like that!"

"_Bahst…!_" Bastiodon grunted back, getting back on all fours.

Starmie landed on a different rock peak safely, seeming to stare at its struggling foe with its core jewel. It would be an intimidating, if not already eerie sight to consider being stared down by a Pokémon with no noticeable face and by it being completely immobile at the moment. After all, there have been stories and rumors passed down the Pokémon community considering that its kind had originated from outer space.

_Starmie, finish it off with another Scald!_

The Mysterious Pokémon formed the Scald again from its top appendage. Byron, however, was prepared for it this time around. With a frightening grin, he twirled his shovel about mightily to begin his quick counterattack.

"Fool me once, shame on me, but fool me twice, shame on you! Bastiodon, turn around and use Metal Burst!"

At the command, Bastiodon leapt up and faced down Starmie as the latter released its powerful Scald. The blistering stream of water struck Bastiodon squarely in the face, but it stood immovable on its feet despite the large amount of steam that appeared to be evaporating from contact. Anabel looked on worriedly as Bastiodon's entire body gave off the familiar lustrous coating of iron once more.

The Shield Pokémon then opened its mouth and formed a sizeable white orb that seemed to also absorb part of the ongoing Scald. The orb grew large enough to block off the rest of the Scald before being fired off. The Metal Burst was shown to be easily slicing through the hot water stream and was heading towards Starmie at a critical rate.

_Starmie, get out of there now!_

The Scald was put to a halt from receiving the telepathic command, but it only proved futile as the Metal Burst struck Starmie at its center almost immediately after stopping its attack. The Scald was what held it back momentarily. Now as a result, an explosion occurred upon contact and Starmie was seen flung into another small rock peak, crumbling it completely upon collision and thus wound up buried by the remains.

"Starmie! My friend! Are you alright?" Anabel called aloud.

Bastiodon seemed to grin from watching its opponent fall to the rocks, but not before experiencing a very painful sensation as its entire body lit up strikingly in red, complemented with occasional sparks of what appeared to be flames erupting from its body. It cringed under the sensation, losing its footing and collapsing on its stomach.

"Bastiodon! What's this?!"

"Folks, it's pretty obvious between you and me that Bastiodon has finally suffered a burn from all those exposures to Starmie's Scald," the commentator stated. "But what of Starmie?"

The pile of gravel and rocks that Starmie was seen buried under started to tremble slightly. Starmie then emerged out its previous predicament swiftly and back to its side of the battlefield, close to where Bastiodon was. It appeared worn out and even the color of its jewel was flickering on and off from bright to dull, indicating its weakened and vulnerable state.

Bastiodon, on the other hand, started to lose the redness that glowered from its body as a result of its burn. Once the Shield Pokémon started to cool down, its face revealed it to be knocked-out with spiraled eyes. It was clear that the burn completely finished it off. Upon confirming its immobile state, the referee raised a flag up and made the decision.

"Bastiodon is unable to battle!" the referee declared. "Starmie wins!"

"Well, folks, Byron is down one Pokémon while Anabel still has her three left to battle," the commentator surmised amidst the loud cheering. "Starmie doesn't look too great, however. Can Byron turn this around?"

"Argh, no fair!" Byron cried out as he recalled his fainted Bastiodon. "I loved my Bastiodon!" _*Boom*_ The Canalave City Gym Leader glared back at the demolition Haunter in the background. "Hey! That was the wrong moment to do that!"

"_Haun-ta,_" Haunter mumbled and waved apologetically, to which Byron growled and faced back into battle.

"Anabel, I have to admit that not many Trainers are able to handle Bastiodon at the first go," Byron spoke out. "But now you're really pushing me to go all out. My remaining Pokémon have been trained up to Bastiodon's level. This next one will definitely give you a greater challenge."

"I'm sticking with Starmie, so there's no way you can get the jump on us now that we know your battle style," Anabel replied back.

"Let's see if you're expecting this Pokémon! Another mighty Steel-type that I love… Aggron!"

Byron's second Pokémon appeared to be more fearsome than its predecessor. Landing on the rocky terrain with a greater thud and standing even taller, Aggron roared and flexed its arms out as part of its entrance into battle. Anabel slightly recoiled from reading into its incredible ferocity, no doubt that the Iron Armor Pokémon was at a high level.

"And Byron's Aggron takes to the field!" the commentator proclaimed. "Though Anabel's Starmie may still have the type advantage over Aggron, it still appears to be severely weakened from its previous battle with Bastiodon. What's Anabel planning to do now?"

* * *

"Starmie's not going to last any longer," May said, worriedly covering her mouth with both hands.

"Anabel needs to bide some more time for Starmie to regain some strength," Max added.

"It's not going to be that easy though," Brock pointed out. "Aggron appears to be at a higher level than Bastiodon. If Starmie's to recover some of its energy to fight back, it has to keep its distance and avoid all attacks."

* * *

"Let the second battle begin!" the referee announced.

"We'll make the first move this time," Byron declared. "Aggron, Metal Claw! Let's go!"

Aggron held its right arm up, storing up power into the sharp claws of its hand. They extended out slightly and gave off a particularly bright metallic shine similar to Bastiodon's previous Steel-type moves, distinguishing them from the rest of its body. The Iron Armor Pokémon then charged forward, causing miniature tremors with each quick stampeding stomp it took.

_Starmie, get to a safe distance! Then use Recover!_

Though clearly worn out, Starmie managed to muster enough strength to leap away from Aggron's range. It floated rather guardedly as its second star was unable to rotate as quickly as before to get away. Aggron slid to a stop when Starmie got away, glaring up in the air behind it to where the Mysterious Pokémon escaped to.

Starmie's jewel started to glow brightly, releasing an aura mixture of its jewel's color with pink and purple that covered its entire body. The Recover had just begun, to which Byron smirked.

"Let's see ya dodge this one! Now use Thunderbolt!"

"Ah!" Anabel gasped in dismay.

Aggron generated electrical sparks around its large body, ultimately culminating enough for a potent Thunderbolt to finish off Starmie. It then released the bright bolt of lightning at the direction of the Mysterious Pokémon that was still recovering lost energy.

_Quick! Sidestep!_

Starmie manage to react in time, inching away to its right just as the Thunderbolt passed through where it previously floated. Unfortunately, it didn't get away in time as part of its left appendage was caught in the vicious Electric attack, in which a number of electrical sparks snuck onto the rest of its body. As a result, Starmie lost equilibrium in the air and fell while bits of static crackled around its body.

"No!" Anabel cried, immediately holding up a Poké Ball. "Starmie, return!" The red beam from the Poké Ball caught the falling Starmie before it had landed on the ground.

"What a twist!" the commentator exclaimed. "Byron's Aggron was prepared with a Thunderbolt attack. Had Starmie taken a direct hit from that super effective move, it would have been done for. Let's see which Pokémon Anabel will send out next."

* * *

"Starmie's reached its limit," Paul muttered grimly. "It's not going to be much use for her later if she doesn't take care of Byron's remaining Pokémon."

"You just want to see her lose, don't you?" Sabrina teased.

"I'm just stating what I'm watching right now."

* * *

"Thanks for hanging in there, friend," Anabel whispered kindly to Starmie's Poké Ball before putting it away. "You'll be needed later when things get rough."

"I'm itching to see who you'll send out next, Frontier Brain," Byron said, bearing a rugged grin. "Know that whatever attack you decide to throw at us, we'll send it right back. _I love defense!_" _*BOOM*_

"I was hoping to save this Pokémon for later, but I think it'll make a nice debut in the Champions League in this particular battle," Anabel mused with a new Poké Ball on hand. "Go, my friend!"

The Salon Maiden's new Pokémon took form upon being released as something that not many people in the audience were entirely familiar with, granted that they never traveled out of Kanto. The sight even caught Paul and Sabrina off guard. It stood on two feet at a reasonable, but still short height. The fur color scheme of this Pokémon nearly matched Anabel's usual attire with the color white over most of its body and a shade of violet from the torso down. Its most notable features, however, were its long split end whiskers and the fur on its arms resembling large flowing sleeves of a traditional robe.

"_Meen…_" it exhaled calmly.

"And Anabel's second Pokémon is Mienshao, a Pokémon native to the Unova region!" the commentator announced up as an image of the Martial Arts Pokémon was displayed in the second slot on Anabel's side upon the battle monitor. "This will certainly be a twist of events if you take into account the preference of Pokémon Anabel has been seen using throughout her career as a Trainer."

* * *

"What's a Mienshao?" May mumbled as she took out her Pokédex once more to look up the registered information.

The Pokédex lit up and began relaying the information on Mienshao, as well as loading up with several images of it in different views and poses.

"_Mienshao, the Martial Arts Pokémon. The attacks of Mienshao involving its arms are swift enough to be considered invisible. In addition, it can use the long fur on both arms as whips for combo attacks against its opponents._"

"I don't think I'd ever imagine Anabel having a Mienshao," Max remarked.

"Now Max, with it being known that Anabel frequently specializes in Psychic-type Pokémon, having an additional odd-one-out would help her in getting the jump on opponents that have otherwise prepared to counter Psychic-types," Brock explained.

"Like Dark-types."

"Exactly."

"But what about handling Ghost-types? What does she have to counter them?"

"Well…"

"Guys, one step at a time," May interrupted, placing both hands on their heads and pulling them back to watch the battle.

* * *

"I befriended Mienshao during a brief trip in Unova the past year," Anabel admitted modestly. "It found me training my Pokémon one day and wanted to test itself against my Psychic Pokémon. Since then, it wanted to come along as it saw me worthy to help it become stronger, even though I offered it to train with Greta instead, a friend and colleague of mine that's better in training Fighting-types than I."

"Quite the fantastic tale to hear," Byron commented, seeming to titter with excitement from being touched by the story of Anabel and Mienshao while briefly shedding what appeared to be manly tears. "Humans and Pokémon, working and fighting together under one cause… It's these iron bonds that we form with one another that truly brings out true inner strength." He swung his shovel over his back, eager to continue their battle. "I love friendship!" *_Boom*_

"Let the battle resume!" the referee announced, raising both flags in the air.

"We weren't done attacking! Aggron, Thunderbolt again!"

"Mienshao, use Calm Mind!"

As Aggron generated another Thunderbolt, Mienshao appeared to have chosen to sit down cross-legged and clasped its hidden hands together. It also appeared to have closed its eyes and was mentally concentrating on something.

"What's this?" the commentator voiced out. "Mienshao is sitting down and appears to be meditating despite the fact that Aggron's about to unleash an attack. Talk about staying calm in the face of adversity! Is this the power of Calm Mind?"

"_Aaaahhhg-graaaaahhhhn!_" Aggron roared, releasing the Thunderbolt squarely upon Mienshao's location.

Mienshao didn't make an effort to evade the oncoming Electric attack. Rather, its body had briefly illuminated in a light blue aura as it stayed in its meditative stance. The Thunderbolt struck the Martial Arts Pokémon as expected, but Mienshao made no indication of pain from being zapped with over a hundred thousand volts of electricity.

Instead, it simply broke out of its Calm Mind meditation by opening its eyes and standing up while still being struck by Thunderbolt. With a sharp yell and flex of its arms, Mienshao easily caused the Thunderbolt to break apart, earning much incredulous stares from everyone watching the spectacle.

"Oh, no!" Byron growled.

"I'm afraid that won't be enough to take down Mienshao," Anabel taunted. "With Calm Mind increasing both special attack and special defense, it also allows me better access into commanding it telepathically as with my Psychic-types."

"Oh, yeah? Let's see ya handle this one! Aggron, use Metal Claw!"

_Counter with Hi Jump Kick!_

Both Pokémon prepared for their respective attacks before charging forward into their destined clash. Aggron stampeded forward with sharp and shining metallic claws while Mienshao leapt high into the air with style complementing its nature as the Martial Arts Pokémon, right knee glowing purple with its fighting power. The moment came and the two of them exchanged attacks to counter the other, resulting in a minor explosion that threw both Pokémon back to their sides. However, Aggron appeared to have received the greater blunt of damage from the collision.

"Now use Stone Edge, Aggron!"

_Block them all! And then use Calm Mind once more!_

Aggron quickly stomped up to bat as two bright elliptical rings of energy formed around it, breaking them into sharp, pointed gray rocks and firing them almost individually. Mienshao took a stance, arms spread wide. With incredible reflexes, Mienshao swatted down the oncoming Stone Edge while its entire body stayed in place. It certainly also made use of its extended arm fur to knock away multiple sharp stones.

When the Stone Edge ended, Mienshao sat back down in its meditative position and glowed light blue as before. Byron was able to deduce Mienshao utilizing Calm Mind again even without having to hear Anabel give out the command vocally.

"Aggron, while Mienshao's down, use Head Smash!"

The Iron Armor Pokémon began to power up, uttering a guttural roar as its huge body was then blazing brightly in an aura of a monochromatic mixture of gray and white. Its own body outline was barely visible, save it for certain parts of its steel hide being highlighted in the aura. Once Aggron got ready, it charged off with its feet somehow sliding and scraping through the ground towards the sitting Mienshao, head first.

_Mienshao, strike back with Hi Jump Kick!_

"_Meen,_" Mienshao grunted, swiftly jumping to its feet and leaping high in the air.

Once more, the Martial Arts Pokémon dove down with a Hi Jump Kick and attempted to take on Aggron's Head Smash. Unfortunately, the Head Smash proved to be even stronger than anticipated, easily knocking away Mienshao while Aggron still kept its charging speed. Mienshao escaped with minor scratches, but it certainly knew that it won't be able to handle another Head Smash the next round.

Aggron, on the other hand, ended its attack and turned around to face its opponent. It appeared to have gone through Head Smash with virtually no damage at all, which could only lead to one thing.

_Aggron must have the Ability, Rock Head,_ Anabel quickly deduced in her mind. _No recoil damage after a vicious attack like Head Smash, this is going to be tough for Mienshao if this continues. I've got to end this now._

"There's no stopping Aggron's steely fury!" Byron bellowed. "Aggron, let's finish this with another Head Smash!"

_Dodge and use Aura Sphere!_

Anabel's quick thinking mobilized Mienshao into the perfect position for a counterattack. Easily sidestepping Aggron's Head Smash instead of trying to take it head on, Mienshao waved up its arm fur to reveal its hands forming the famous blue ball made of powerful spiritual energy, its own aura. With a mighty thrust, the Aura Sphere was flung into Aggron's right shoulder from behind, eliciting a loud explosion.

Aggron was broken out of its Head Smash and was seen scraping against the ground on its front side out of the smoke and smashing into a couple of rock peaks on the field. It was able to stop itself by placing its hands out to slow it down, but it was unable to stand up from its knees. It didn't help that it wound up partially buried in rocks.

"Aggron, no! Get up!"

"Mienshao, finish it off with Aura Sphere!"

There was no point to hide her attacks at that point. Mienshao dutifully obeyed and tossed another Aura Sphere at Aggron's location. The attack exploded upon colliding with Aggron's back, causing the Iron Armor Pokémon to ultimately collapse on its chest. The Aura Sphere also blew away much of the debris that covered Aggron, revealing its entire body along with its dazed expression and spiraled eyes.

"Aggron is unable to battle!" the referee declared, raising a flag to Anabel. "Mienshao wins!"

"What a fantastic battle between strength and iron wills!" the commentator exclaimed. "And now Byron is down to his last Pokémon while Anabel's maintaining a good lead with all three of her Pokémon still able to battle. But it looks like Mienshao has taken quite an amount of damage the past round. What will happen now?"

"Aggron, return," Byron said, recalling his fainted Aggron back into its Poké Ball. "You fought hard and well. Rest now."

"This still can be anyone's battle at this rate," Brock remarked. "Both Anabel's Starmie and Mienshao have sustained damage from their previous fights while Byron's last Pokémon is going to be fresh."

"Well, I never would've imagined that two of my prized Pokémon would be taken down early on in the match," Byron mused, taking out his third Poké Ball. "I guess that only means that I should learn to value the rest of my Pokémon just as much!"

"What's his third Pokémon?" May questioned, practically sitting at the edge of her seat to see.

"I cherish everything they've been through for me, so I really shouldn't play favorites," Byron continued, looking upon the new Poké Ball in his hand. He leered back at Anabel with a wild grin, preparing to unleash his final Pokémon. "I guess it's your time now. No matter what, I value all of your strengths equally, especially your unique abilities. I love… Bronzong!"

Byron's last Pokémon appeared out of the light of its Poké Ball as a large blue-green bell with arms with a strange face pattern similar to a totem pole, hovering ominously over Mienshao from where it was released. Anabel took a step back, visibly blanching from seeing Bronzong floating in all its sturdy, mysterious glory.

"… B… B-Bronzong?!" Anabel repeated in a strained whisper.

* * *

_Over Four Years Ago…_

"_Metagross, no!"_

_The Metagross fell from the air and landed with a great thud on the battlefield. Its legs were unable to support the rest of its body. It was over once its red dazed and spiraled eyes were seen from the dust cloud that erupted from its fall._

"_Metagross is unable to battle!" Maron declared, looking remorsefully at Metagross's Trainer before making the final judgment. "Bronzong wins and the victor of this six-on-six battle is Lucian!"_

_Said Trainer that won merely smiled from the call. Brushing away a few strands of his long light-purple hair from his face, he walked into the battlefield where Metagross was being comforted and treated._

"_I had a lot of fun battling with you, Sister dearest," Lucian said, his Bronzong following him from behind. "It's sad that it had to end already."_

_His sister said nothing, but continued to comfort her fallen Metagross. Lucian tried again to reach out to her._

"_I was really impressed when your Metang finally evolved into Metagross during our battle. It nearly took out my Bronzong at that last bout."_

"… _Then I would be facing five more Pokémon from there, wouldn't I?" she replied darkly. Lucian frowned._

"_Listen, Anabel, you may have been recently called to be in charge of the Battle Tower, but even you recognize that you still have a long way to go."_

"_And I suppose that being book smart is the way to go in order to be admitted into the Elite Four."_

"_Look, stop comparing us like this," Lucian warned. He was definitely losing patience with his younger sister. "We each have our own ways of making it to the top. Mine just happened to be the way it is while you have yours… You should be grateful for that special ability you have with Pokémon. Many would kill to have that skill."_

_Anabel merely gave him a look before tending back to her Metagross. Lucian gave off a worn exhale. _

"_Maybe if you'd just let me help you with-.__"_

"_I don't need your help," Anabel interrupted dourly. Lucian stepped back from the sudden bite. "It's as you said, you have your way and I have mine. My Pokémon and I will learn from each other and grow stronger together. The last thing I want to be known as in the Pokémon world is some imitator in your shadow, just to flatter your ego."_

"_Anabel…"_

"_Please leave… Brother…"_

_Anabel's eyes went down to Bronzong, the single Pokémon that managed to annihilate her entire team without sustaining much damage itself. After burning its haunting image into her brain, she turned away completely and recalled Metagross. She got up and mechanically left the battlefield, her back still turned towards Lucian. The Sinnoh Elite Four member silently complied with her wish and prepared for his leave, but not before meeting up with Maron the referee._

"_Please watch over her," Lucian requested, gripping the battle judge by the shoulder. "I know what she's going through, but she's just being stubborn right now."_

"_I understand, Lucian sir," Maron said with a nod. "But know that she doesn't really mean her hostility. She does love and admire you deep down. She just…"_

"_I know. She's still very young and has a lot more going for her than I did at her age. It's sad though. The world can be a cruel place."_

* * *

_No! Not this time,_ Anabel told herself, keeping her emotions in check.

Despite the avid crowd activity going on around the arena, things felt eerily silent on the Salon Maiden's end. Her fatigued Mienshao was left against a freshly released Bronzong, reminiscent of her first battle against her Elite Four brother. One of her first devastating losses and against her own brother, it certainly left a lasting impact on her since then. She's handled losses well in the past, given her position, but when the topic fell on comparing her with her brother, it often got on her nerves to the point that things become really unpleasant afterward.

"Are both Trainers ready to resume battle?" the referee asked.

"Ready!" Anabel and Byron answered back.

"Then let the round continue!" the referee announced, flags up in the air.

_Mienshao, strike down Bronzong with Aura Sphere!_

The Martial Arts Pokémon was quick to respond in forming the bright blue aura ball despite sensing a bit of snippy tension from its Trainer. Mienshao then leapt up and flung the Aura Sphere straight on towards Bronzong.

"Speed's not going to save you this time!" Byron called out, grinning madly. "Check this out! Bronzong, use Trick Room!"

Bronzong rung out an unnerving chime as its whole body glowed light blue. In a split second, time seemed to freeze. The Aura Sphere was flying in midair, gaining no distance towards its target whatsoever. At that moment, what appeared to be a transparent blue ceiling, along with walls, covered the entire battlefield like a small building. The Trainers and their Pokémon were trapped inside the Trick Room from the view of the spectators.

Anabel gaped from witnessing the Trick Room take effect. Though the walls and ceiling had soon disappeared from sight, she was able to see how Bronzong was able to evade the Aura Sphere due to the bizarre physics concerning the Trick Room and now had taken control of the battle by instantaneously appearing behind Mienshao. It was getting harder for her to not panic at this stage.

"Mienshao, Hi Jump Kick!"

"Use Zen Headbutt, Bronzong!"

Bronzong struck first, slamming into Mienshao first before the Martial Arts Pokémon could react with the handle-like structure on top, which at the time emanated its psychic energy. Mienshao was thrown across the field and skidded to a stop after crashing into a rock peak. The referee was able to see its fainted expression with spiraled eyes in spite of the stones covering it.

"Mienshao is unable to battle!" the referee declared, raising the flag to Byron. "Bronzong wins!"

"Quite the sudden turnaround we have here, folks!" the commentator narrated. "Anabel is down one Pokémon and left with Starmie and an unknown Pokémon while Byron's Bronzong is just getting started. To top it off, Trick Room is still in effect, meaning that slower Pokémon get to attack first!"

"I should've known he'd pull a trap like this," Anabel berated herself before recalling her fallen Mienshao. "Thank you, my friend. Please take a long rest."

* * *

"That's a new tactic that I'd never guess Byron would use, taking his typical defensive style into account," Sabrina remarked offhandedly. "This will certainly present a new challenge for Anabel to overcome."

"Her chances have just gotten lower with Trick Room in play," Paul brought up. "Bronzong are notoriously slow with high defensive and special defensive power. With Trick Room active, the tables have turned on her."

"Come now. You know that there's one Trainer you can think of having conquered this kind of trial before."

Paul merely sneered at her attempt at lightening his mood, which ironically Sabrina held no particular expression for herself either.

"She's not him."

"Doesn't mean that he's the only one allowed to defeat a Pokémon using Trick Room."

"Hmph."

Paul's gaze lingered for a bit on the Saffron City Gym Leader before looking back at the battle.

* * *

"Go, my friend! Starmie!"

Starmie was rereleased back into the battle. It still sustained the heavy damage from its struggle against Bastiodon and had narrowly escaped from Aggron's grip. Though it was free of electrical static from being briefly touched by Aggron's Thunderbolt, Starmie was still scuffed up from previous bouts. The light from its core jewel was still slowly flickering on and off, indicating its currently low stamina.

At the same time, the bizarre structure of Trick Room materialized for a moment, much to Anabel's irritation. It was sadly still in effect.

"And Anabel is using her Starmie for this round!" the commentator announced. "Can Starmie outlast Bronzong in this battle or will Bronzong get the upper hand once again?"

Within the cheers of the spectators and the tension of the battle, Anabel took the time of preparing a suitable strategy to relay to Starmie before the referee resumed the battle. Byron appeared confident, but then again he was always passionate over certain things, battling, fossils, and defense being major items. The referee noted that the Pokémon were in position and thus commenced the round to continue.

_Starmie, I know that you're running low on steam, but I'm really going to need your help now more than ever. I'm sorry to say that chances are that you won't be able to last long against Bronzong, but I do know that you'll be able to endure long enough to turn the tides back on our favor._

Anabel felt an emotion of consensus from Starmie, also noticing the movement of the Mysterious Pokémon on the field, though back turned, was similar to a nod.

_Right! Use Recover to get back some strength to fight!_

Starmie's jewel began to glow and the familiar power of Recover slowly overtook its body as a result of Trick Room's power.

"Sorry to say, but can't let you do that, Starmie!" Byron chuckled gruffly. "Bronzong, take it down with Gyro Ball!"

Bronzong practically teleported to the other side of the field upon receiving the order. If Starmie could express its emotions outwardly, it would felt like a long time that it's ever seen a bulky Pokémon like Bronzong move so fast. Regardless, Anabel's enemy was its enemy, that's what it believed in.

The arms of the Bronze Bell Pokémon seemed to have extended out a bit as the ends of them started to glow a bright blue color. Bronzong then spun swiftly enough that a luminescent ring around its rapidly rotating form was made in effect from the bright ends of its arms. It started to move towards the recovering Starmie while keeping its high spin in effect. Remarkably, it still moved in its notably slow speed at attacking, but Trick Room's properties have prevented Starmie from moving faster as it was already faster than the Bronze Bell Pokémon.

Bronzong tackled into Starmie, effectively disrupting a full recovery and flinging the Mysterious Pokémon into a vulnerable state flying in the air.

"Finish it with Zen Headbutt!"

_Use Scald!_

Once more, Bronzong took advantage of the power of Trick Room and appeared ahead of where Starmie was thrown. However, Starmie still had enough stamina to stabilize itself in the air and release a potent stream of Scald right as Bronzong prepared to ram into it again. The top section of Bronzong glowed light blue, right where the Scald was pushing back against it.

"Go, Bronzong! Defense! Defense!"

"Don't let up, Starmie!"

The power struggle continued on. Starmie continued the pressure by continuously dousing its opponent with sweltering hot water. A bit of heat redness seemed to linger in places on Bronzong's ancient body where Scald washed over before cooling down. All the while, Bronzong continued its advances towards Starmie while the latter did its best at keeping distance.

"This is quite the battle we're seeing now!" the commentator relayed. "These two battlers refuse to cease their attacks. The pressure's on now! Which will be the first to fall from this excitement?"

_Starmie, douse Bronzong's entire body with Scald! With any luck, we might be able to burn Bronzong!_

"I'm afraid that playtime ends here," Byron growled, having grown bored with the ongoing scuffle. "Bronzong, Gyro Ball!"

With Trick Room still in effect, Bronzong spun rapidly and seemingly repelled the streams of Scald while managing to negate any probable damage from Starmie's attack. It skillfully used Trick Room's power to edge closer to Starmie to ultimately knock it out for good.

_Stop it with Signal Beam! Quick!_

Before Starmie had a chance to retaliate, Bronzong managed to take advantage of its momentary weakness once it ceased the Scald. The Bronze Bell Pokémon swiftly materialized before Starmie before viciously ramming it at its core jewel. The ring of energy around Bronzong's spinning body grinded into Starmie's core, noticeably cracking it before forcing the Mysterious Pokémon crashing into the ground on its back with its jewel completely lifeless and partially shattered.

"Starmie is unable to battle!" the referee called out, raising Byron's flag. "Bronzong wins!"

"No…" Anabel whispered in dread, trembling slightly with realization dawning upon her. She also never felt her eyes to be as wide as they are now, gazing blankly over to where her Starmie was defeated.

"And Starmie is down for the count!" the commentator roused, mixed along with varying shouts from the active spectators. "Now both Anabel and Byron are down to one Pokémon each! But with Bronzong having to consecutively deal with Mienshao and Starmie, will Anabel's last Pokémon have the upper hand? Or will that Steel-type steal away victory from under her nose?"

* * *

"This is when the real battle's starting," Brock mentioned, watching Anabel recalled her Pokémon and thanking it. "Anabel needs to straighten herself out if she still hopes to win."

"Why? What's wrong with her?" May asked.

"Thing is that since Bronzong appeared, I noticed that her body language changed. It just seemed different than when she faced Bastiodon and Aggron."

"Maybe it's because she got overconfident with Byron being on his last Pokémon?" Max suggested lightheartedly.

"No, it wasn't overconfidence. It was more… on the opposite end."

"How much different did you see?"

"If I could put into words how she was feeling and how her Pokémon moved about in conjunction to those emotions…"

* * *

"I sense a particular history between her and the Pokémon, Bronzong," Sabrina surmised. "She's particularly determined to take it down as soon as she can, but she's gotten a bit careless because of her surfacing anxiety."

"So she's got a personal vendetta against Bronzong?" Paul reworded, looking on sternly. "I wonder why… Wait, the announcer doing all the play-by-plays, didn't he mention her relation to Elite Four Lucian before the battle began?"

"He did," Sabrina confirmed with a nod, a bit of enthusiasm shimmering from her normally monotonous eyes. "Lucian is a master Psychic-type specialist and her older brother. Aside from being one of the strongest Trainers in the Sinnoh region, he's also a role model for many Psychic Trainers despite not having any inherit psychic abilities himself. Although, they say that his ability to read and digest books and literature in a timely matter is second-to-none."

"Other than that, I know that Bronzong happens to be a signature Pokémon of his, used in many battles… and winning them," Paul continued, smirking roughly as the answer became clearer. "I know I'm right about this one when I say that I thought _I_ had issues with my older brother."

Sabrina casually tried to look away, shamefully trying to hide her own rising smile from his scathing wit and humor.

* * *

"Bronzong or not… I'm not going to lose," Anabel muttered under her breath, last Poké Ball on hand. "We haven't battled much together recently nor have we had much practice in coordinating our attacks, but all the more of a reason for us to fight under this cause. Go, my friend!"

Steady in her determination to win the match regardless of her opposition, the Salon Maiden released her final Pokémon with victory in her mind. It materialized out of the light of the Poké Ball and landed with tremendous girth. In spite of its size, though, it carried an easygoing and lax personality.

"_Snohre-lahx,_" the Pokémon rumbled, standing awake and tall.

The transparent dimensions of Trick Room materialized once again before fading out of sight.

"And Anabel's third and final Pokémon is Snorlax!" the commentator announced. The audience cheered loudly for the last match. "It all comes down to this, Snorlax against Bronzong! Folks, sit tight and this match is going to be one for the ages!"

"Let the final battle begin!" the referee immediately declared.

"It's not going to matter how much bigger you get if you can't get pass our Steel defense, much less the speed-warping power of Trick Room," Byron boasted. "I love defense!" _*Boom*_ "And… _I love Trick Room!_" _*BOOM*_

"If that's so, why don't you go ahead and attack?" Anabel incited, hiding a sneaky smile from view.

"Alrighty then, Frontier Brain. Have it your way! Bronzong, use Zen Headbutt!"

Bronzong hovered into action, front plate and top handle pointed forward in Snorlax's direction and covered with shimmering blue psychic power. Snorlax, on the other hand, stood rather calmly with an unreadable expression. Only until they were meters apart that a smile appeared on Snorlax's face, much to Byron's surprise.

The Sleeping Pokémon suddenly disappeared from Bronzong's range, only to appear closer to it than before. Snorlax then grabbed Bronzong by its arms and held it off, rendering the Zen Headbutt unable to land a hit.

_Throw it down and use Body Slam!_

Snorlax made a few good rounds of rotating while still holding onto Bronzong before leaping remarkably high in the air and throwing the Bronze Bell Pokémon hard into a rock peak. Snorlax then leaned its body in the direction where it threw Bronzong and landed with its full weight on top. The impact caused a huge cloud of dust and debris to fly up around them.

"What the happy little hole just happened?!" Byron demanded.

"It was a long shot, but I figured that I might have a chance of using Trick Room's power to my advantage if my Pokémon was slower than yours," Anabel explained with a quick wink. "Snorlax is considered one of the strongest Pokémon I own, but it tends to have a mind of its own at times. Fortunately, we were on the same mental wavelength for this battle. Otherwise, we might have not been able to pull this little stunt."

"Very clever, very clever indeed," Byron commented, grinning wildly. "Well-played using my own field advantage against me now, but what are you going to do now?"

"You'll see fairly soon, but you know what? I think I'm starting to like Trick Room now. Maybe… I think I actually_ love_ Trick Room." _*Boom*_ "Huh?!"

The Salon Maiden restlessly looked around her, confused on why a sudden cloud of haze exploded from behind her. The instigator of the explosions found itself caught in psychic power; its Psychic Gym Leader friend had enough of its shenanigans and was reeling the Gas Pokémon out of the inner arena inconspicuously.

Back on the rock battlefield, Snorlax swiftly leapt out from the crater its trembling Body Slam created while Bronzong hovered out of the rocks arbitrarily. The damage turned out worse than originally conceived as mysterious yellow sparks of energy crackled at sporadic moments around its ancient body and causing it pain, indicating one thing.

"Oh, my! Folks, it appears that Bronzong is suffering the ailment of paralysis as a result of that grand Body Slam!" the commentator remarked while the spectators fell into silence, holding their breaths as the outcome seemed to appear more unpredictable now.

_Snorlax, now use Brick Break!_

"Bronzong, don't let that stop you! Use Zen Headbutt!"

Snorlax lumbered forward with astounding speed, powered and white-glowing fist held up over its head. Just as it was about to slam down its Brick Break on the paralyzed Bronzong, it disappeared from sight just as Snorlax did prior. Surprised, the Sleeping Pokémon slid to a halt in front of the crater its last Body Slam on Bronzong caused.

Bronzong then somehow appeared right behind Snorlax and rammed into its back with a sheer Zen Headbutt, shoving Snorlax into the crater. Snorlax tumbled onto its bottom, glancing back disgustfully at the Bronze Bell Pokémon.

"What happened?!" Anabel cried out.

"Because of paralysis, my Bronzong's speed dropped even lower, surpassing Snorlax's own sluggishness," Byron guffawed. "Now Trick Room's serving me as it should once more! Now Bronzong, use Hypnosis!"

Bronzong vibrated an ominous chime as the round red eyes at the bottom of its body started to glow light blue with its odd psychic power. Two blue spheres of light emerged from its eyes and flew straight into Snorlax's face, particularly into its closed eyes. The Hypnosis spheres disappeared upon contact, though their influence was evident when Snorlax's eyes momentarily flashed their light before the Sleeping Pokémon ultimately collapsed on its back into a sleeplike trance.

"Now's our chance for victory, Bronzong! Gyro Ball!"

_Sleep Talk!_

Bronzong spun into Gyro Ball, building up power with its reduced speed from the paralysis while ominously hovering over the slumbering Snorlax. Though the paralysis sparks continued to crackle around its body, the Bronze Bell Pokémon wasn't put into a complete body bind. However, just as it was about to strike, Snorlax inexplicably jumped back on its feet, sending a Brick Break in the form on a chop to knock it back into a small rock peak on the side before falling on its back to sleep.

"The surprises and tricks are getting ridiculous, folks!" the commentator exclaimed. "Despite Snorlax having been put to sleep by Hypnosis, it was able to land a Brick Break just as Bronzong was about to strike with Gyro Ball! Was that the work of Sleep Talk?"

"These theatrics are no match for our defense, no matter how many you pull out of your fancy sleeves, Frontier Brain," Byron growled back. "Bronzong, Zen Headbutt back to back!"

_Keep using Sleep Talk while you're still asleep!_

While still under paralyisis, Bronzong was given the chance to move first, freeing itself from the rubble and floating at high speed with a fully-charged Zen Headbutt. Snorlax tumbled to its feet; it was really difficult to tell if it was actually asleep or awake from its face alone. Regardless, Snorlax leapt forward with its entire bulk to counter Bronzong's attacks. Basically, the two titans entered the classic clash where they continuously rammed into each other, Zen Headbutt against Body Slam induced by Sleep Talk. Occasionally, Snorlax mixed it up by throwing in Brick Break to throw off Bronzong.

"These two powerhouses are giving it their all despite their current status ailments! What a show!" the commentator remarked, accompanied by the roused cheers of spectators rooting for either side. "How long can they keep this up?"

"… _Snohr?_" Snorlax grunted in question, coming to a sudden halt in attacking.

"Oh dear!" Anabel cried, pressing a hand over her mouth. "Snorlax's now awake. Sleep Talk doesn't have an effect now."

"Ha! Now Bronzong, finish it Gyro Ball!" Byron hollered.

Bronzong suddenly stopped as well as it appeared to be shaking in midair, slowly coming to the ground. Byron, Anabel, and everyone else watching saw the paralysis taking a complete hold on the Bronze Bell Pokémon. It's now completely paralyzed.

"Folks, it looks like both Pokémon have reached their limits with all those attacks!" the commentator pointed out. "The next attack might finally settle this power struggle once and for all and determine who'll move on to the next round."

_Snorlax, use Brick Break to send Bronzong flying!_

Being the only one out of the two unhindered by an ailment, Snorlax leapt forward with a heavy step and threw a Brick Break in the form of an uppercut to send the paralyzed Bronzong flying and spiraling in the air, just as the Salon Maiden wanted.

"Bronzong, no!" Byron yelled desperately.

_Finish with Giga Impact!_

Snorlax took the stance of powering itself up. Energy surged and consumed its body, evident as the debris of gravel was blown away from a fair radius from where it stood. The Sleeping Pokémon then leapt up remarkably high in the air as though it suddenly learned how to fly. Its huge round body was encapsulated in a transparent energy orb tinted light purple. The nose of the Giga Impact was lead with yellow light with streaks decorating over the body. The Giga Impact maneuvered towards and struck the vulnerable Bronzong overhead, eliciting a massive explosion with aftershocks that blew over the suddenly frightened audience.

Out from the explosion's haze ultimately fell Bronzong, straight into the center of the rock battlefield. It landed front first into the unforgiving hard ground, creating a sizeable crater upon impact. It became obvious for everyone that it no longer had the strength to move or fight for that matter. The referee confirmed his judgment and raised the flag.

"Bronzong is unable to battle!" the referee announced. "Snorlax wins! And the victory of this match goes to Salon Maiden Anabel!"

The crowd was wild with loud cheers and accolades for the Salon Maiden that narrowly claimed victory over a powerful Gym Leader. Brock, May, and Max stood and applauded for a fantastic job well done along with the rest of their row. Everyone else naturally followed, at least those that were into the battle. While the commentator went on about the epic match that was just witnessed in the rock field at this time, the concluding competitors gathered together at the center of the field for their own conversation.

"Anabel, that was a fierce and ironclad battle we had, thank you," Byron commended, firmly gripping Anabel's delicate hand for a sportsman handshake.

"That means a lot to me, Byron," Anabel replied sweetly, suddenly looking rather sheepish. "I apologize if I was a bit rough with your Bronzong. That Giga Impact may have been a bit too much."

"Nah, don't worry about it! Our defensive power is everlasting, so that Giga Impact won't have any lasting consequences on us. Speaking of lasting, you better last all the way this tournament, ya hear?"

"I hear you," Anabel said with a soft laugh and eyes closed momentarily. "Byron?"

Anabel noticed that Byron had disappeared, though it didn't take her long to find him at where Roark and his wife were sitting. He appeared really animated while his son seemed anything but. Byron's wife merely sat in her seat next to her son, smiling at their vigorous interaction.

"But Dad, I'm still competing in the Champions League," Roark argued. "I have to continue training."

"What?! Are you trying to say that you're too old to visit Grampa Canyon with your mother and me?" Byron retorted. "And I thought you loved digging for fossils!"

"Now _that's_ a low blow! I thought you'd be supporting me for being stronger and lasting longer than you have in this tournament."

"You've had your match for the week already. And competitors are allowed to leave New Island as long as they return for their scheduled matches the coming week."

"Dad, some sacrifices needed to be made. Rampardos barely lasted the first match, and that was against a roaming Pokémon Trainer."

"Ha! I guess that only proves it."

"Proves what?"

"That I love fossils more than you!"

"You're _really_ pushing me now, Dad!"

Anabel kept a light giggle to herself as she watched one notable case of father-son bonding. In amidst of all the excitement taking place around her, from Byron and Roark's little quarrel to every spectator in the rock field stadium applauding and showering the field with praises, the Salon Maiden suddenly felt a sensation peer through her back. In other words, she had the impression to look behind her into the stands where a particular young man with the red cap and Pikachu stood.

Everything and everyone else seemed to fade away, leaving the two of them staring at one another. Anabel looked on with uncertainty while he stood as unreadable as ever, regardless of the fact that the visor of his cap concealed his eyes. Yet within the casted shadow of the visor, Anabel was able to see part of his left eye. Her will was strong, tempered against even the most hardheaded as witnessed from her battle with the Steel Gym Leader; strong enough to brave the seeming mask he wore and was able to see a dull ray of light from the eye that was free from the shadow.

It stood out like a call for help.

* * *

**Longest… chapter… at this point. That's my written out battle chapter for you. I do have a bundle of things I like to point out and clarify.**

**I planned for this battle to happen since the primary stages of this fic… I thoroughly enjoyed writing it… Probably mentioned already in past chapters, I made Lucian as part of the development in Anabel's character since she's more or less a blank slate from the anime… Her relation to Verdanturf Town as her home town isn't canon, but a reference to how the Battle Frontier originated in **_**Pokémon Emerald**_** in the Hoenn region, as well as another "borrowed" idea from my brother… **

**Haunter was a random twist I threw in for this chapter… Before I found out Mienshao was really a Fighting-type, I thought it would've been perfect for Anabel to have, but variety always works, even though I was tempted to give her an Entei or a Raikou like her counterparts from the games and manga, but ultimately decided against it (Despite how Brandon uses Regirock, Regice, and Registeel, Tobias… no explanation, and an inspector Nurse Joy wielding a Latias)… Did any of you catch the (admittedly lame) throwbacks to **_**Star Fox 64**_** somewhere in the battle?… **

**And finally, a random quote about Byron I found somewhere which may be inappropriate, but good thing this fic's rating is T: And I quote…**

'**Imagine how Roark must have been conceived.'**

"**I LOVE MY WIFE!" *explosion***

**Close quote. (I wouldn't put it past him, but I'm not going any further into this now.)**

**And now it's time to measure up how my writing skills are. **_**I love reviews! *BOOM***_

**L-ater!**


	10. The Plans That Are Up In the Air!

**I was fortunate that summer semester final exams didn't require too much time out of me, so now I'm free for two weeks until my second year in university. Ah, year long schooling, but now I'll know what I want to study into for sure, whether it'd be writing or not. ****Now that we're on the tenth chapter, it's time I started to solidify a few things to keep this little story set and stable.**

**Just read on and you'll come to understand what to expect what I have in mind.**

* * *

"Guys, I'm telling you the truth. I found Ash sitting in at Anabel's battle. I know what I saw!"

"May, you keep telling us that, but he wasn't there when you pointed. Besides, what would he be doing watching a battle by himself anyway?"

"She might have a point, Max. You never really know what goes on in his head these days."

"Isn't that why we're worrying about him in the first place, Brock?"

The trio of long-time friends was on their way back to the Pokémon Center right after Anabel had concluded her match and the battlefield crew started to repair and clean up the rock field for the next scheduled match for the day. It was usually the most ideal place to meet up with the rest of the group. Not too surprising that they all bonded well together, considering who their common friend was. It certainly never got old.

"But Ash's beaten Anabel before if you guys remember," Max continued. "Why would he want to watch her battle?"

"It would be smart to keep tabs on all competitors just in case you have to fight them in later rounds," Brock explained. "Besides, that's all in the past now. We've all seen how much Anabel has improved since she battled Ash in the Battle Tower over three years ago."

"I guess that makes sense," Max relented.

"And you're supposed to be the Pokémon genius," May added wryly with a shrug.

"Hey! It's not like you did any better when you first started out."

"What was that?!"

"Calm down, children," Brock intervened, keeping the siblings apart with his hands on their shoulders. "We wouldn't want to appear warring against each other in front of our friends. Besides, we've had enough childish conflicts in our group as it is, if you recall the latest rivalry we've seen."

Both May and Max calmed down as requested, apologizing meekly before approaching the automatic front doors of the Pokémon Center. Almost immediately after the doors opened up, they were greeted with the usual activity going on at the front desk. Nurse Joys went back and forth tending to several Trainers having their Pokémon healed while others conversed with one another. Though Brock was tempted to flirt once again with the Nurses at the floor, he still didn't forget the consequences of facing retribution from his Croagunk, of whom he questioned why he still carried him around, along with the resurfacing wounds known as Misty and Max altogether combined. All three at once certainly made the normally flirtatious Doctor know his place.

At the usual location at a fair corner of the lobby, the trio found the remainder of the group sitting around and waiting for them.

"Hey, gang!" May greeted, waving over to the others and being greeted back with an instant hug from Dawn.

"Hey, you three, have you had the chance to get to know Iris and Cilan?" Misty replied, gesturing to the two Unova natives sitting next to her. "They have some pretty awesome stories while they traveled with Ash in Unova."

"Well, we've been well-acquainted with them, but we haven't had a good old sit down together," Brock said, joining them. "I do know that Iris is training to be a Dragon Pokémon Master while Cilan is an A-Class Pokémon Connoisseur and Gym Leader with his brothers. As a Doctor and former Breeder, I'm curious on how you guys go about training and handling your Pokémon."

"Now that's a recipe I'll be willing to divulge to you," Cilan spoke up eagerly.

"Plus, I really want to know how Ash was like back when he was traveling with you and Misty," Iris added, followed with an excited agreement from Axew in her hair.

At the meantime, May, Max, and Dawn formed their own little conversational group to share their individual events of the day so far, considering that they had their own little adventures during the morning prior to this point.

"You really didn't miss out with our shopping spree, Dawn, though I wish some guys went with us and _helped_ us with our bags," May muttered, glaring particularly at Max. "Misty and I could only carry _so_ much of our spoils."

"Hey, I needed to train some more for the next Pokémon League, and besides, I'm not the only guy at fault here," Max retorted.

"Speaking of battles, the one between Georgia and Iris was really cool," Dawn intervened. "I even learned that there was a new Pokémon type discovered recently."

"Really? What's it called?" May asked.

"It's called the 'Fairy-type,' and certain Pokémon were discovered to have it. Jigglypuff, Marill, and supposedly Gardevoir were recently discovered to be part Fairy-type."

"I never knew… That's amazing!"

"Get this, the best part," Max interrupted. "Dragon-type Pokémon are especially weak against Fairy-types. That's what's been released for public knowledge lately."

"Hence was the reason why Georgia challenged Iris in the first place, to test their power out if they're as effective in taking down Dragon-types as they claim to be," Dawn continued, recalling their battle in mere segments. "The battle ended in a tie, though, but it seemed that Axew would've been the first to go down if Outrage wasn't successfully carried out.

"Wow, I guess that Dragon-types aren't as strong as they used to be with another weakness added, and by Fairy-types, huh," May surmised offhandedly.

"You got that right, girl," a familiar assertive voice concurred, much to the surprise of the young Coordinators and younger Trainer. Iris notably stood out of her seat and practically stomped through her group.

"What do you want now, Georgia?" Iris demanded with a pointing finger. The said Dragon Buster merely smirked back with arms crossed over her bosom.

"You mad, Iris?" Georgia responded coolly.

That awkward time came upon them once more upon the confrontation of these fierce and considerably eternal rivals. Despite the rest of the Pokémon Center going about in its usual business, the group sitting at the waiting area suddenly felt excluded from the rest of the world and thrust into _their_ world once again.

"… Well, that escalated quickly," Max remarked in the background, with everyone else agreeing with nods and inaudible grunts.

"That battle's in the past now, so why won't you leave us alone?" Iris argued.

"Considering these fine people to be 'yours alone,' that comes off as being childish, wouldn't you agree?" Georgia taunted.

"At least I _do_ have real friends and not some imaginary fairies like a kid does!"

"Why you little…! Argh! … Forget it, I'm not going to lose it this time," Georgia muttered to herself, surprisingly holding her own childish temper down. Now Iris was interested, though remained skeptical of the drastic change of behavior.

"Alright, what's up with you now?" Iris inquired, to which her older rival resumed her characteristic confident self once more.

"You can keep these people as your friends to yourself," Georgia began, in which a shifty grin slowly stretched across her face, "because who I have is a friend is someone that you'll never be able to claim back."

Now everyone was confused on what the Dragon Buster meant by her statement of having someone that Iris supposedly had no hope in having. The Dragon Trainer initially sneered at the claim, but realization slowly came over her and an expression of dread took over her young dark-skinned face.

"You're lying," Iris countered hastily.

"Pardon?" Georgia questioned innocently.

"I have no one of interest that would be taken in by you."

"You sure?"

"Of course I'm sure. They're… They'd be all Dragon-related, something _you'd_ never associate yourself in a million years!"

"I never said he was related to Dragons, nor would he be obsessed into them like you are. Try again."

Iris was slowly becoming infuriated with Georgia's mocking. With that restriction placed down openly, there was only one option that sparked in her mind that she was very reluctant to admit it.

"You… how… No way!"

"Hmm? Did you say something?"

"Yeah, I said something. There's no way _he'd_ be with you, of all people."

"Assuming that you're finally on the same brain wavelength as I and thinking the right guy… Hee hee!"

While the others still attempted to discuss the topic, Iris immediately went over to Georgia and grabbed her by the neck of her spring green blouse. The latter merely smiled in contrast of the raging Dragon Trainer temporarily trapping her.

"No way… Not in a million years! I don't believe you!" Iris growled while Georgia remarkably remained calm despite her favorite shirt becoming wrinkled in the grip.

"What's wrong, Iris?" Misty asked.

"This loon claims that she and Ash are together now!" Iris cried out acidly, inciting everyone's astonishment over the possibility.

"I am _not_ a loon," Georgia hissed back, knocking away Iris's hand from gripping her blouse. "And what would make it so unbelievable about me being with him anyway?"

"For starters, anyone that actually sees him has been unable to strike up even a decent conversation with him," Misty brought up.

"And he was already hard to find to begin with," Brock added.

"And many other Trainers seemed to be actually scared of him now because of that preliminary battle and new personality he has," May commented lamentingly.

"I'll admit that I'm scared of him, if you guys are too," Max said, hand held up meekly.

"His use of new spices and concoctions in his battle style are frighteningly daring that only the bravest and well-seasoned can handle through, possibly only for those within the levels of the Elite Four," Cilan remarked, suddenly finding himself smiling. "He never does cease to surprise anyone, does he?"

"Hey! None of those even answered my question!" Georgia interrupted irately.

"I've got your answer," Iris spoke up.

"Well?"

"It's because you're a cold-hearted, hypocritical, tyrannical, weird, and sad little kid who's in way over her head in winning over Ash if we couldn't," Iris explained at a casual tone, remarkably held in one breath.

"… Was that it?"

"Yep, that was it."

An eerily silent moment passed over the group once more, all expressions remaining the same as they were. The first to break was Georgia, who interestingly started to smile and hold in rising uproarious laughter in spite of receiving a major insult from her rival. Confusion fell upon them once again with her uncharacteristic reaction.

"Ha! In the words of that jerk, Paul, that was really pathetic!" Georgia chuckled, holding onto her aching sides from the building laughter inside.

"Okay, you're seriously messed up in the head," Iris fumed.

The Dragon Buster quickly calmed down and closed the distance between her and her rival, much to Iris's irritable discomfort. Their noses could practically touch given the last couple of inches was removed between them. Axew burrowed himself deep within his Trainer's hair, hoping the badness would depart soon.

"Look, I know how much you miss Ash and I could care less on how much the rest of your friends miss him," Georgia started. "But I know how much of a victory it will be for me when I completely steal him away from you now that he appears to be riding alone these days."

"I never knew you'd stoop to such low levels, even for you," Iris retorted. "How shallow can you be?"

"Shallow?!" Georgia repeated as though the word itself left a bad taste. "Unlike you, my desire to be with him is actually genuine. I don't plan on belittling and insulting him as you or any of your 'new friends' did before."

"What?!" the others shouted, incredulous by the accusation.

"He's already proved to be a tough Trainer when I first saw him battle in various competitions back at Unova. Of course it'd be natural for him to attract attention from the public, especially since he's a foreign Trainer overseas. Quite a rare catch, if I may add."

"Ugh, you're disgusting!" Iris huffed, throwing her arms up.

"Hey, the only flaw I found in him was why he was traveling with a kid like _you_, Iris," Georgia shot back, jerking up a thumb towards herself in a poised manner. "So I'm going to make up for his current misery right now and be there for him. I'll be the first girl and human for him to open himself back up to. It's nothing personal to the rest of you, just Iris really."

"Good luck barking up that tree," Misty quipped, her particular tone catching the Dragon Buster's interest. "It sounds like you're head over heels into him from the way you just went about your plans on him."

"So what if I am? Unlike some people, I'm not afraid to be in touch with my feelings."

"Could've said otherwise with all those Ice-type Pokémon you've caught," Iris remarked snidely, Georgia's hearing picking up on it as signaled by the twitch of her ears.

"Says the girl with the irrational fear over Ice Pokémon, that just happens to be one of the many fatal weaknesses of Dragons, including themselves if you hadn't already realized," Georgia drawled.

"Kid!"

"Anyway, I'm warning you as one of Ash's former companions/close friends that if you're trying to pursue romance with him, you're going to need all the luck you can get," Misty resumed. "Powerful Pokémon Trainer or not, he's still thicker than an Aggron's hide. You'd be lucky if he does understand what romance is."

"She does have a point," May said in agreement.

"Well if you hadn't already noticed, we Dragon Busters don't ever give up on our goals, whatever they may be," Georgia declared. "Here's some additional food for thought: what other reason would I be focusing on Fairy-types now instead of heavily relying on Ice-types to take down Dragon Pokémon?"

"Versatility always helps when building up a strong team," Max immediately answered helpfully.

"With a helpful variety of ingredients to choose from, your battle recipe can certainly pack a wallop for anyone that tries a taste," Cilan continued.

"A lot of correct answers there, I've got to admit, though I'm still not satisfied with the explanations," Georgia mused.

"Hmm, they're correct with the aspect of battles, but… from a more psychological view, where the Ice-type specialization typically represents coldness and aloof, the newly discovered Fairy-type can be related to dreaming, fantasy, and, in Cilan's words, has a sweet taste," Brock brought up. "That's an interesting concept to think about if Georgia really does plan to master Fairy-types."

"You've got to be kidding me," Iris scoffed, briefly rolling her eyes before resuming a glare on her rival. "_You_ being nice and sweet? In a million years probably and even then the odds would be against you."

"Meh, it can happen," Georgia replied with a casual shrug. "It just takes the right motivation and circumstance to get into it. I'm certainly giving it a shot and it worked so far, your Axew being the prime example of what happens when crossing a Fairy-type."

Iris didn't have anything more to say and wound up attempting to snub the Dragon Buster off, with her nose pointing up and in the opposite direction away. Axew merely popped his head out from the left side of her hair and sighed in response, recalling his rough experience in battling Jigglypuff. Now satisfied with declaring her intentions to her rival and her side group of friends, which included stumping the former, Georgia simply kept her gaze upon them while the rest of them looked back and wondered what would happen next.

"Listen, if it's any consolation to any of you, I haven't had a successful meet with him yet," she announced rather sympathetically. "I'm telling you this because I'm being a good sport about it, but I am serious on befriending Ash and getting him to come out of that new shell of his."

"Befriending?" Dawn repeated. "I thought you said you had something else planned for him."

"One step at a time, of course. Now, if you ladies and gents… and Iris excuse me, I'll be off training some more to take down bigger Dragons. Catch y'all later."

Georgia then walked off and attempted a cool hand wave with her back turned to the group while they saw her off. Though still visibly upset, Iris managed to calm herself and sit back down in her previous seat next to Cilan and Misty. May, Max, and Dawn moved closer and joined them. One thing was certainly common in their minds at this time.

"She's just going to use him once she gets him, that nasty girl," Iris grumbled bitterly, receiving a comforting hand from the Cerulean City Gym Leader.

"I don't know, she always means what she says," Cilan said. "Maybe she can pull Ash of the bottom of the barrel he's trapped himself in."

"What?!"

"If you don't like it, Iris, then you and the others ought to do something about it," Misty reprimanded.

"But don't you even care about Ash anymore?" Iris inquired.

"I do, but look at where we're at right now. It's been two weeks and none of us, save it for May, actually bumped into him. And even then, she didn't even know that was Ash. Of course I still worry for him, but he's a big boy now and he's certainly proved that he can take care of himself."

"Plus, we all won't be able to stay around for long on New Island," May intervened, indicating herself and her fellow Coordinator. "Dawn and I still have Contests to compete in to become Top Coordinator, even though we'll come back to see if any of you are still competing."

"I actually think Cilan, both his brothers, Forrest, and I are taking our chances now since these surviving Trainers are going to be a real challenge," Misty mused.

"Not to mention our dad, he's still surviving strong, isn't he?" May asked her brother, who nodded back devotedly.

"There're also all members of the Elite Four and the Champions of the five competing regions still out there on the tournament board," Cilan mentioned. "Things will definitely spice up for all of us in the third round."

"Once the Gym Leaders are defeated, they're required to return to their Gyms in order to resume accepting challenges from other Trainers," Brock stated. "After all, as an additional requirement from the Pokémon League prior to be permitted into the Champions League, full-time Gym Leaders were required to find temporary substitutes to manage the Gym so that they wouldn't be overrun by outsiders, my dad being an example for the Pewter Gym."

"And my sisters," Misty added along.

"I want to fight the actual Gym Leaders, not their substitutes," Max said longingly.

"Guys! You're falling off topic _again_!" Iris complained. "What about Ash?"

Each one of them exchanged glances with one another, coming up with what can practically be considered the same thought before looking back at the uneasy Dragon Trainer. This time, Brock moved in closer to the center to speak on behalf on the others.

"Iris, you're not alone about worrying about Ash," the good Pokémon Doctor assured. "But we have to respect that if he doesn't want to seek us out for whatever reason it is, we'll have no choice but to acknowledge it. I don't recall any of us actually offending him to the point that he no longer wants to be around us, but I guess that's just something time will show us later on. Until the day comes and we're able to confront him, there's not much we can do but wait. Georgia can do as she wants. If she does succeed in getting close to him, well…"

"She'll keep him all to herself and we'll never get him back!"

"Eh, I think you're overreacting about−."

"I'm _not_ overreacting!"

While Brock tried to deal with the emotional Dragon Trainer in amidst of their friends, one figure sat close by within earshot while waiting for her Pokémon to be healed completely, having overheard everything going on since the intrusion of the Dragon Buster. Her Espeon looked on at the group warily, but was repeatedly calmed by a gentle caress on the head.

The sitting Trainer, in turn, wasn't too pleased with the ongoing results that she heard so far, but kept her cool. She was, however, glad that none of them even noticed her, even with her sitting on a long seat by the front glass window wall by the entrance.

"There's nothing to worry about in the end, friend," she whispered. "This is all the more reason that we have to keep on her trail now. However, with her addition, it should prove to be interesting though."

* * *

_Elsewhere…_

Two stoic figures stood facing one another at another clearing in the small forest of New Island. The afternoon sun was starting to descend from its highest point in the sky. A sparse group of wild forest Pokémon went about their activity with only a couple of them actually watching the solemn instruction taking place between the two humans. It was a more frightening prospect from their view that the woman gave off a vibe of greater intimidation than the young man across from her.

"Your first test will begin tomorrow morning, just as the first matches for the day take place," the young woman said. "Your opponent will certainly be an interesting matchup for you. You feeling up for this, Paul?"

"Of course," Paul replied back just as evenly as his 'helper' spoke. "I took care of all training earlier this morning and my Pokémon are at full strength now."

"This will be a good measure on how you battle now, considering on how your next opponent is remarkably similar to one of the Trainers you wish to fight again here."

"Appearances are one thing, but battle styles will always differ from Trainer to Trainer. However, considering the high qualifications it takes to make it into the Champions League in the first place, I should expect no less from this guy. Have anything else of interest to add, Sabrina?"

"I could add on," Sabrina paused, "but it would best for you to figure out on your own."

Paul kept a small smirk to himself with his eyes closed as part of his usual relaxed expression, somehow finding some amusement from her response. A gentle breeze blew across the forest clearing and caught the both of them in its formless embrace. The origin of the stream of wind came from a fair distance over the trees, where in the meantime Haunter was keeping itself cool in the summer sun with a large paper fan by taking large swipes with a disembodied hand.

"It's not really going to matter in the end, is it," Paul stated as fact. "Why are you even trying to help me anyway?"

"It's easy for humankind to forget, or selectively choose not to remember," Sabrina muttered softly. "Consider this as my way of gratitude for your assistance in moving along my psychological dissertation."

"There hasn't been any real progress since the last time we observed either one of them."

"Again, time will play a critical element in it for them… and for us."

Sabrina stepped closer to Paul until there was barely any noticeable difference between the two of them. While being held down on both shoulders by her hands, Paul looked on unflinchingly, but had already pondered his next course of action once Sabrina made her move. The only problem was that like him, her face and posture were unreadable to a degree, more so than he was.

"Gym Leader or not, I don't understand you at times," Paul shared bluntly.

"I'm not exactly what everyone else would call the 'life of the party,' nor do I know the customary social customs of this age," Sabrina replied back, a tiny smirk curving on the right side of her mouth. "But you do want to know for yourself if bringing Ash and Anabel together would benefit him in becoming stronger, right?"

The Veilstone City Trainer took an unconscious step backwards. In another rare moment for him, he found himself in a position where he was actually feeling a bit intimidated by another being, granted he was dealing with the Mistress of Psychic Pokémon herself. Her title itself also didn't exactly guarantee that he would be dealing with sunshine and rainbows, or any other pleasantries at that.

"You know there's a reason that I haven't bothered with such useless things in the past," Paul brought up, thinking what he knew she was up to.

"But the past is now the past and whether you like to fully acknowledge it or not, you've changed," Sabrina continued on his behalf, leaning her face close to his to the point that the tips of their noses nearly touched. A heartbeat later, she pulled away before Paul could even feel an aneurysm pulse in his heart. "But enough time will get you to finally understand everything."

"Will you stop treating me like a child?" Paul demanded, losing a bit of patience with her ever strange behavior. "I'm capable of learning things correctly in a short span of time and I will not be mocked like this."

"Well then, do you understand why controlling your emotions would ultimately lead you to become a better Trainer?" Sabrina suggested, to which Paul couldn't find a way to argue back. "It still stands as a road block between you and Pyramid King Brandon. Also as a Gym Leader and an atoner, I desire to help fellow Trainers reach their potential, among other things."

"What do you mean by 'atoner'?" Paul repeated, genuinely curious.

"Time," Sabrina continued to tease, holding up a pointer finger and gesturing it to her wrist. "It's time to get going." Her partner wasn't amused.

"Right…"

* * *

_At a separate section of the forest…_

He sat a large rock, conveniently flat, close to the heart of the small New Island forest. Not many Trainers had the time or effort to explore deep into such parts for one reason or another. It didn't matter to him as it made things easier for him to not deal with people. He was also content on not having to deal with the faces of his past despite being on the same island as they. Uncompromising guilt rose within the pit of his gut every time they entered his mind. He just couldn't deal with it right now, which was particularly the reason why he chose to rough it alone. Humans were such complex creatures, it was annoying. Pokémon, however, had been a different story for him.

Aside from letting his own team enjoy some fresh air outside of their Poké Balls, a few wild Pokémon now and then would pass by and give a salutation to him if he was ever in the area. His year of training to greatly understand their hearts ultimately paid off as there were some things he no longer needed to request vocally as long as they were hanging on the same wavelength, that was how he felt about it anyway. It may have had something to do with his own unique gifts that were talked about at seldom points from his previous travels, but he hadn't shown much interest in mastering aura to the point of becoming an archetype figure known as the Aura Guardian. He stayed firm on his dream to becoming the best that ever was in the art of Pokémon battling.

As a matter of fact, as he looked upon his unique model of the Pokédex in his right hand, he couldn't help but recall some of his most dangerous and heartbreaking memories shared with it the past year as he overcame not only those that have continuously wronged Pokémon and nature altogether, but his own inadequacies as well.

This worn-out large red Pokédex specially modified for him after announcing his goal after traveling through the Decolora Archipelago with past friends, it served him well in calling upon his other friends and training them as well without consistently returning to a Storage System Transport at a Pokémon Center. He certainly needed to thank Professor Samuel Oak for allowing him to be the first tester of the invaluable function and proving its success time and again during his training and survival.

"_Pikapi!_" a Pikachu called out to him.

He stood up and went over to his long-time friend to reunite with the rest of their team. Play time was finished and now it was time to train once more.

* * *

**I was tempted to start off with another battle, this time to try out Paul, but following the previous chapter, which also followed a battle, it just didn't feel right. So this time, I'm pulling the plot along with some things for you to mull over. Georgia issues the challenge to Ash's former companions to reach out to him first, the development between Paul and Sabrina, and finally the third (hopefully self-explanatory) segment of the chapter.**

**Just so you all know, when you do play around with these ideas constantly and imagine many scenarios on how the story will overall turn out to become, you can't help but let them grow on you. For this reason, both Paul and Sabrina have really grown on me a lot more than Ash and Anabel, huh… Again, I enjoy experimenting with these things and besides, this fic could use a bit more spice. **

**So it's now official and will be displayed on the story summary: there will be some one-sided ConfidenceShipping (Georgia's also grown on me aside from revealing the Fairy-types for us, even tough chicks have their soft sides) and minor LachrymoseShipping (Paul and Sabrina; who'll cry first? (if you've caught on the name of the pairing)).**

**One final piece of business before I let you go as you please: I have my first poll set up on my profile page regarding around the new Pokémon Ash has caught over the "time skip." As the question states, I have already decided on two new Pokémon and most likely the third, but I'm curious on what you all think who should be the third one. This is for fun, of course. So please go ahead and check out the list for yourself, the list having been made under somewhat thoughtful considerations. I apologize to some of you, though, that there will be no Legendary Pokémon involved. So how will he stand a chance against Tobias next time? Again, that's to be seen later on. We're still young, people.**

**So please, take the time to check out my poll right after you measure up my writing skills and review the chapter. Thank you all for hanging in there.**

**L-ater!**


	11. Flash from the Past! Paul vs Ritchie!

**I'm not going to be as lucky as I've been the first ten chapters, meaning I really won't be updating as quickly as I used to. Fall semester in my second year means more work load. I'm also wondering why I'm losing readers, but that's just something beyond my control. Pity though… Still not going to give up on this story, even with the various reactions concerning the previous chapter. I'm actually amazed to hear back the good and bad, even though there weren't as many reviews this time around. I wonder why.**

**And another quick heads up, I'm keeping my fun little poll up on my profile for who-knows-how-long. Maybe until the time of the unveiling that I'll close the poll and reveal the results of what many of you expected the third Pokémon to be. Just remember as wanted and expected are two different things. It's really amusing and predictable to see what many of you wanted in regards of what's really meant to be for this story, but regardless…**

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome all to a brand new day here in the New Island Champion Conference!" the cheery voice of a new commentator announced throughout the grass arena.

"YAY! YAH! WOO!" intertwined voices of the early morning spectators roared loudly. Even at an early time, there were hundreds of dedicated Pokémon fans that want to watch battles live in place of watching them from their convenient televisions from their hotel rooms.

"It's a fine morning to continue the second rounds and to be in the grass field of all places, that's for sure! Please welcome in the combatants in place to start off this field with a bang!"

The intensity of the cheers rose up from the conclusion of the grass field commentator's introductory. The Trainer boxes split open and the two challengers of practically the same age rose out of the ground. For most long time viewers, the scene seemed rather nostalgic and very familiar.

Emerging from the left side of the tournament screen was a young man of seventeen years, closer reaching eighteen, with thick purple hair and an ever stoic expression draped underneath. Across from him was another young man of similar age with messy hair, kept underneath a cap, and a determined look to trade back to his opponent. For those that could remember such a scene, the most memorable being that of the Sinnoh Lily of the Valley Conference over two years ago.

"These two Trainers have made their reputations well known throughout the regions, but now they're put to the test in this round," the commentator continued.

Several individuals seated and scattered around the grass field stadium that knew either combatant looked on firmly, eager to see what was to erupt from the first round. From the serious to the comically indifferent, a sparse handful spoke out their thoughts concerning this battle.

"Let's see how you do against someone that appears remarkably similar to Ash," Sabrina muttered under her breath.

Haunter floated next to her with a wicked grin, holding up a plain white cardboard sign with a crude comical crayon drawing of Paul's face, decorated with stars and hearts around the head, as means to support their somewhat favored competitor at the moment.

"I should've expected Ritchie to make it this far, he's like a smarter Ash back when we first met him," Misty commented to Dawn.

"Then this should be a great battle, Paul against an Ash clone," Dawn said keenly. "It's too bad the others aren't around for this. I was sure that Brock would be here since he's the only other from our group that knows him."

"And Ritchie too. I seriously think this tournament's getting in everyone's head with all the extra training and all."

"But aren't you concerned about staying in it too, Misty?" Dawn asked concernedly.

"Of course I am, but there's also no point trying to burn yourself out from it," Misty answered. "I trained my Water Pokémon after a quick dinner yesterday. They're all in tip-top shape and raring to go at the call."

"That simple? I suppose that makes sense, but I don't think I'll ever understand regular Pokémon Trainers," Dawn sighed, glancing back to the field as the grass field commentator began giving out the introductions for both entering Trainers.

As the brief background introductions were shared to all those tuned into for this particular battle, one particular Salon Maiden sat in her seat with her mind preoccupied with other things once again. The familiar introductory scene of the current Trainers triggered another fresh memory for Anabel to mull over; strangely enough, it was this recent one, having took place last night.

* * *

_Yesterday evening…_

_This day had been very eventful. From a morning full of preparatory meditation for a fierce afternoon battle, along with some drama thrown in after where she inadvertently caught herself into, she couldn't wait to finally unwind and sleep for the coming morrow. A simple walk by the border of the New Island Park and forest was one of the ways to give her peace, though she would guiltily admit to herself that it would've been better if a certain someone was by her side other than her loyal Espeon._

_The forest air was cool and crisp. She always found herself particularly to be at peace with nature, especially since she was a little girl. At this stage, any matter of worry or concern wouldn't bother her at the slightest._

_And of course, his timing was ever impeccable…_

"_A-Ash!" she stuttered out of surprise, catching the young man with the red cap, along with Pikachu on shoulder, emerging out of the forest._

"…_!" an equally astonished and wordless gasp escaped his lips as far as any of them heard._

_A quiet moment passed, indicated by another breath of wind, whose scented combination of the leafy forest and the dainty, albeit manmade park walked through the two humans and their Pokémon. On Anabel's behalf, the awkward tone fell on her considering her last confrontation with the estranged Pallet Town Trainer._

"… _Hello," Anabel greeted as calmly as she did, wanting to end the rather painful silence._

"… …" _Ash lifted his head up slightly, revealing an eye underneath the dark shade of his visor. Normally, he would manually tip up his cap with a hand if he were to show his eyes off, which happened more on the battlefield than anywhere else as evident from his preliminary battle with Jump._

_Anabel didn't know why that particular detail stood out, but once more, she recalled after her battle with Byron upon catching him mixed in with the audience that the same sort of phenomenon took place where she did see eye to eye instead of dealing with the usual brooding cap visor covering the top half of his face or the predatory hat tip upon making the kill in battle. _

_However, she knew that if she was to get anywhere with learning more about Ash, what had happened to him the past year, and to ultimately deal with her own personal feelings for him since those first couple of days meeting him, she had to act now._

"_I… I… Listen," Anabel began with a sigh, "I don't regret anything, except for this… for not helping you when you clearly need it."_

"… …"

_Ash's eye narrowed slightly, even though aesthetically it was hard to determine anything concerning his eyes underneath the shadow of his visor. But even sensing the intimidating aura from the stare, the Salon Maiden stood her ground undaunted._

"_Ash, there are people that care about you… and they still do now," she said. "Even though I don't know exactly what's going on, I want to know… I want to understand you. Please."_

"… … … …"

_As far as Ash ever knew of Anabel, she was a kind, friendly, and conservatively powerful Trainer in her own right, certainly powerful enough to attract Scott's attention and warrant a place in the Kanto Battle Frontier regardless of her age as the second strongest out of the seven. Aside from her titular prestige and her special ability of great empathy to Pokémon, other aspects surrounding her were still a mystery to him. _

_She also wasn't particularly close to his old companions, but they all had taken a liking to her upon meeting each other. He would've been otherwise foolish to ignore their interactions that first day upon arriving at New Island; it was hard to ignore the scene anyway when their main attraction had been a scuffle between a Dragon Trainer and a Dragon Buster that he knew personally and did consider as friends in his previous journey._

_As much as he wanted to bring himself back to his dear friends…_

_No… _

_It's too far for anything to be done…_

_It was his fault…_

_It's always been his fault…_

* * *

"_You're too late, you meddlesome brats! We've only begun our return!"_

"_The Pokémon… Cubone… His mother… They're all…"_

"_Ash, snap out of it! We have to stop them!"_

"_I… I let them down…"_

"_Pikapi…"_

"_Ash, we can't dwell on this. Let's go!"_

"_NO!"_

* * *

"_Ash?" Anabel's voice spoke up, concerned._

_The Trainer whose name was just mentioned discovered himself in quite the precarious situation. His legs were spread slightly apart, knees were bent, and his hands were placed on both sides of his head as though he was suffering some migraine, which was not the case. Memories of the previous year left him shocked to the core in exchange for the power he has now. But because of this one last obstacle, he was still a step short of reaching his true potential as a powerful Pokémon Trainer._

_Why he had yet to confront this, well, no one is perfect._

"… …_!" Ash breathed unsteadily, taking a step back._

"_Wait, Ash! I won't hurt you!" Anabel called out._

"_Pika, Pikapi," Pikachu intervened, appearing to nuzzle himself against the side of Ash's head as to calm him down._

"_Pikachu, please… tell me what happened to him," Anabel advised evenly, treating the situation as though any sudden movement would set off a sensitive bomb around them. "I want to help." Espeon then mewled up, particularly with edge. "_We_ want to help."_

_The Mouse Pikachu shook his head. Anabel understood the blatant emotion, much to her own disappointment. It would make sense that the story would be for Ash to tell at his own pace, not for anyone else to compromise with it. But taking into account the last encounter, this time had some major progress. It was essentially the classic 'take-what-you-can-get' scenario._

"_Well, just so you know, Ash, I'll be here for you," Anabel said reassuringly, taking a couple of steps back to give him space. "I meant what I said when there are people who still care about you. Anyway, have a good night and I'll see you later."_

_She knew she could've been bolder with her approach, but she also experienced firsthand where that path led her previously on the last confrontation, which was the road to nowhere with discouragement on the side. As difficult and painful as it was for her in simply watching his distance from his former companions, she knew she needed to fully break down and comprehend the situation he's been over the past year one step at a time. _

_Anything to see him the way he was before._

"… … _Anabel."_

_As she and her Espeon departed from the forest and park border and left behind the ever silent young man in red, an unnoticed but familiar brooding figure took note behind a tree and smirked before sneaking in some last minute training with his Pokémon._

* * *

Though she wouldn't openly admit it, watching Ash's battles and his particularly unorthodox battle style from the previous League Conferences and other minor competitors broadcasted gave her a refreshed feeling and greater motivation to become stronger as a Trainer herself, especially with her title as Salon Maiden. Anabel knew that he made remarkable progress during his time in Sinnoh, judging from his last two battles in his year at the Lily of the Valley Conference.

Even though she was watching someone who was comparably a clone of him, at least according to his friends and other zealous followers, battling against Paul, the thought was amusing yet strangely comforting to her.

At a considerable distance at her seat at the lower levels, Sabrina smiled from seeing that faraway look she had, whether Anabel realized it or not.

_Well, Paul, that was a good little scoop you managed to dig up,_ she thought, redirecting her gaze to the Veilstone City Trainer on the field. _You'd certainly make a fine spy if not a hit man._

"This round will be a three-on-three Pokémon battle," the referee announced. The commentator had finished the introductions and the audience had quieted down to watch the match unfold. "The battle will be over when all three Pokémon on either side are unable to continue. There's no time limit and substitutions are allowed. Trainers, please select your first Pokémon!"

"I can tell that this is going to be an exciting battle," Ritchie stated aloud, drawing out a Poké Ball with a star sticker decorating the top red portion from his belt as he glanced at his opponent for a final word. "I've heard much about you and did the research beforehand. You even fought my old friend, Ash, but lost to him in the Sinnoh League. I won't expect anything less from anyone he considers a true rival."

"Then bring it," Paul demanded brusquely, warily lifting his first Poké Ball out of his pocket.

"You got it! Ringo, let's do this!"

"Nidoking, stand by for battle!"

Ritchie's Pokémon took flight into the air, revealing itself once the energy had dispersed to be a bold Staraptor. Paul's Nidoking, on the other hand, materialized on the ground, crushing a wide circumference of long grass under his rather massive weight. Ringo glared down at its opponent with an additional growl bared from its beak. Nidoking slightly bent back as his entire body briefly illuminated crimson red with pale white streaks vibrating down.

Paul narrowed his eyes, obviously not amused.

"Ohh! Just before the battle even began, ladies and gents, Ringo's Intimidate has already struck down and lowered Nidoking's attack power like a thief in the night," the commentator remarked.

"Ritchie is allowed the first move," the referee announced, directing a flag to the right side of the field.

"Alright! What luck!" Ritchie exclaimed. "Ringo, let's start with Aerial Ace!"

"And Ringo's off flying high in the air as if tomorrow never knows," the commentator narrated as the battle commenced.

The Staraptor flapped its wings a couple of times to gain additional altitude before diving down with great speed, the friction through the air causing bright white streaks to flare from its beak. Both Nidoking and Paul stood steadily, but from the look on their faces, they were both expecting a full direct assault from their opponent.

"Nidoking, Double Kick!"

The Drill Pokémon swung his powerful tail down on the ground, allowing himself to jump at an incredible height for a creature his size and mass. Ritchie and Ringo were caught off guard, the latter disengaging from its Aerial Ace once its target miraculously disappeared from range.

Nidoking's shadow descended ominously over Ringo's back while the latter attempted to recover from its failed attack. Nidoking had then used his full weight to fall back to earth; both feet spread out and ready to strike down the Staraptor.

"Ringo, use Double Team!"

The Predator Pokémon was fortunate to have trained reflexes; upon hearing the command, it momentarily flashed white before several blurs escaped from its spot. Nidoking landed on what appeared to be Ringo, but phased right through the body upon attempting the Double Kick. The landing caused a small cloud of dirt and grass blades to fly up.

Several Staraptor copies flew overhead in quite the organized formation around Nidoking, moving about in patterns and exchanging places with one another. The cloud from Nidoking's land dissipated, revealing the Drill Pokémon not too pleased with the situation. With one shadow copy down, Nidoking kept glancing around, attempting to find the real Ringo.

"Ringo, let's try this again! Use Aerial Ace!"

The Staraptor copies ceased their elusive formations and flew up all together. Nidoking leapt back to his original place on his Trainer's side while Ringo and its copies dove in at varying levels. Several of the copies that struck first around Nidoking vanished. Paul quickly made the assumption that the last Double Team copy was the real Ringo, flying in from the rear.

"Nidoking, behind you! Block it!"

With a hefty snort, Nidoking spun on one foot to catch the last Staraptor diving down with Aerial Ace right before it struck. He held his hands out to stop the Predator Pokémon, although he was unable to place both feet on the ground for support. Ringo tackled into Nidoking's abdomen and managed to push the Drill Pokémon back a good amount of meters along the grass field before Nidoking swung his tail down to regain equilibrium.

With his inherent brute strength, Nidoking was able to hold down Ringo and eventually broke it out of its Aerial Ace formation. The Predator Pokémon struggled in the tight grip, its wings completely held down and legs kicking out aimlessly without any luck. Nidoking held it high, keeping enough distance between himself and his opponent's wild legs.

"Ringo, get out of there!"

"Now use Thunderbolt!"

"Aah!"

"_Niii-dooooh…!_" Nidoking growled as he quickly generated a powerful bolt of electricity from his horn.

He then struck the captive Ringo point blank at very close range upon reaching the desired volt level. Poor Ringo screeched and squawked in pain, disorientated and severely damaged from the Thunderbolt from its place. It resiliently continued to struggle while still under the powerful Electric attack, getting lucky as its foot managed to strike up against Nidoking's chin. The Drill Pokémon inadvertently stumbled back from the short retaliation, ceasing his Thunderbolt while releasing Ringo.

Ritchie's Pokémon flew back to his side. Its scorched appearance and haphazard flight back was apparent that it wasn't going to last any longer at the rate the first round's been going.

"That was surprise trick from Paul's Nidoking, using a super effective Thunderbolt at close range," the commentator voiced out. "Ringo managed to survive that round."

"I think I've got you and your battle style figured down for real," Paul began speaking, much to Ritchie's surprise. He knew his Sinnoh opponent was not much of a talker and figured from the way he carried himself that he doesn't often have nice things to say when he does talk.

"What makes you say that?" Ritchie inquired.

"That fact that you mentioned that you knew Ash wasn't coincidental to me," Paul explained pointedly. "I'm also sure that you've been compared to him by others that knew him, given your appearance and… tastes in Pokémon."

"Staraptor are uncommon Pokémon to have, though I wouldn't be surprised at all if Ash also owned a Staraptor," Ritchie countered.

"I'll give you this, though, that you've commanded your Staraptor more efficiently than he had his back when I battled him. However, with intelligence and common sense aside, you lack any particular strength to fully distinguish yourself from him, thus rendering any possible strategy you come up with as predictable when facing the more experienced Trainers. In short, it's so predictable that it's pathetic."

"Hey, I battled and defeated him in the Indigo Conference six years ago."

"Yes, you battled a Charizard that refused to fight back and follow orders, who is now regarded as one of his strongest and most reliable Pokémon in battle. If this was anything like the past, you might have a chance of winning over me, but this is no longer the case. I don't plan on losing to him the next time we battle here, and I'm certainly not going to lose to a clone of his."

"Is that so?" Ritchie challenged, more determined than disheartened from his opponent's ruthless speech. "It's still the first round, Paul. Nothing's decided yet until the end. Now Ringo, use Brave Bird!"

"_Staaahhrrrr…!_" Ringo screeched, valiantly taking off into the air once more.

Ritchie's Starpator had powered itself up after rebuilding its speed, seeming to catch fire from the entire process. However, the Staraptor appeared to redirect itself back towards Nidoking's direction after staying away at a fair distance to recover and build up its strength. Its Brave Bird reached full power once the flames that had consumed its body faded away and replaced with a bright blue aura. Ringo had then taken into another full frontal charge once again.

"Not yet, Nidoking," Paul advised, observing the Brave Bird-powered Staraptor closing in towards his Pokémon.

Nidoking made no other response to the command but to wait patiently as his Trainer wanted. The distance was closing up fast. The fiery blue aura of Brave Bird even seemed to reflect off of Nidoking's eyes, the light only growing bigger as Ringo got closer and closer. The moment of truth was just about to arrive. Who was to survive this collision?

"Go, Ringo! You got this! Dive!"

"Use Poison Jab!"

Nidoking showed a fist glowing a venomous purple at the incoming Staraptor. Just as Ringo was about to strike, the Drill Pokémon implemented another creative sidestep with the use of his tail. And right as Ringo was passing through, Nidoking sent a sharp Poison Jab into one of its blind spots. Since it was in its Brave Bird state, the collision of the attacks elicited a significant explosion, Nidoking being the first to be thrown out of the smoke from the impact.

The Drill Pokémon slid back on his feet, revealing to have taken some damage with some minor black marks on his hide. The explosion smoke quickly dissipated, revealing Ringo to have crashed into the wall of the arena in a self-made crater after being struck by Poison Jab. A closer look revealed its eyes to be spiraled and dazed.

"Ringo is unable to battle!" the referee declared, raising a flag to Paul. "Nidoking wins!"

"And Bob's your uncle!" the commentator exclaimed in a curiously foreign accent, followed with the somewhat halfhearted cheers of the spectators. "The first round is now over and the field is like an Octillery's garden. Nidoking's Poison Jab made sure it was done. If only Ringo had a little help from its friends, if you catch my fancy. At least I know what to do when I'm sixty-four. Heh heh heh… heh… ehh…"

Various members of the audience, along with other spectators watching from afar on live television, quickly murmured and exchanged opinions over this particular battle, immediately disregarding the commentator's obscure and out-of-the-blue references. These two young battlers were sought to make it far in the Champions League, but now it was either one or the other to advance further.

* * *

"Doesn't look like Paul's taking any prisoners, seeing how he quickly overpowered Ritchie's Pokémon," Dawn brought up casually. "Usually he'd use up a Pokémon to figure out his opponent's strategy before completely overwhelming them, unless he already knows."

"It also doesn't help that Ritchie bears a bit of resemblance to Ash, including the kinds of Pokémon he owns," Misty added. "Since Ash did have a Staraptor, he must've already known how to deal with them. Ritchie just needs something unexpected to throw Paul off guard long enough to defeat him."

* * *

Back on the grass field, Ritchie had recalled Ringo and thanked it for its hard work in weakening the opposing Nidoking. At this point, he felt confident that he'd be able to overcome the Drill Pokémon with the Pokémon in his second Poké Ball.

"Zippo, let's go!"

A fierce Charizard emerged from the light of Ritchie's Poké Ball, landing on the ground with ease before showing off with a guttural roar. The echoing sound waves of the roar appeared to blow through the grass and even caused Nidoking to brace up his arms over his face. Paul briefly looked impressed and was rather eager to see if that Charizard lived up to its power.

"And Ritchie's second Pokémon is a Charizard nicknamed Zippo," the commentator announced as Zippo's picture lit up underneath Ringo's blackened image on the scoreboard monitor. "Ladies and gents, this is sure to be a promising battle of brute force. But with the previous battle taking its toll, Nidoking would appear to be at a disadvantage."

"Let the battle continue!" the referee declared.

"Nidoking, use Thunderbolt!"

"Dodge and use Flamethrower!"

Zippo took flight and easily maneuvered away from the oncoming Thunderbolt. No matter how Nidoking tried to redirect the attack, the Electric attack eventually ceased and the Charizard counterattacked with a bright burst of flames from its mouth. Nidoking instinctively held his arms up in front of his face to brace against the attack, but the Flamethrower was able to momentarily knock him off balance.

"Now Zippo, finish this with Steel Wing!"

Ritchie's Charizard fully extended out its wings and stored up energy in each one, causing them to give off a metallic sheen and strengthening them into steel density. Zippo confidently glided down towards the disorientated Nidoking, preparing to hold a Steel Wing back to strike.

"Nidoking, block it!"

A ferocious glint sparkled in Nidoking's eye, immediately after he regained balance. Ritchie was stunned by the gesture that he was unable to call off the attack, not that it mattered at that point as it was too late. Using both hands, Nidoking managed to catch Zippo's Steel Wing, this time using his tail to assist in braking and preventing him from being pushed back.

It was the same old song and dance with the Drill Pokémon catching a physical attack with brute force and capturing his opponent after breaking them out of their attack. Zippo was unable to do anything else with both wings in Nidoking's grip.

"Zippo, no!" Ritchie cried.

Paul was shown to be smirking his rare small smile. He knew what was coming next. Nidoking then suddenly threw his head forward, his sharp forehead horn pricking into Zippo's abdomen. The might from the action knocked Ritchie's Charizard back and rolling on the grass. Zippo managed to stand back up despite of that, but its pained face contrasted its supposed well-being.

"Zippo, what's wrong?" Ritchie asked worriedly.

A faint violet blush appeared over Zippo's muzzle. Its fatigued expression complemented the look of illness. It also didn't help that sinister violet sparks began to discharge around Zippo's body, even over its flopped wings. Every taxing breath that Zippo took only seemed to make it appear even weaker.

"Oh, my! It appears that Zippo's been poisoned by Nidoking's special Ability, revealed to be Poison Point!" the commentator pointed out anxiously. "That's a bit of bad luck right there as the poison will continue to sap away its strength until it's no longer able to continue."

"Zippo, hang in there!" Ritchie called out.

"Return!" Paul's voice was heard.

"… What?"

Ritchie looked over his opponent's direction and witnessed Paul recalling Nidoking into his Poké Ball and fleetingly thanking him. A Pokémon substitution was taking place, much to Ritchie's sudden confusion. Nidoking was capable of fighting back, but Paul probably wanted to use a fresh Pokémon to take on Zippo.

"Ursaring, stand by for battle!"

The released Hibernator Pokémon was revealed to be even more aggressive and hostile in demeanor than Nidoking, giving off quite the angry roar while flexing out its arms. With that action seen and done, Ritchie had decided on his next move by also pulling out a Poké Ball.

"You're not the only one allowed to substitute," Ritchie called out. "Now Zippo, return!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, looks like we're seeing a double substitution here," the commentator went on. "Paul's second Pokémon is Ursaring. I wonder what Ritchie's third Pokémon is!"

"With a Normal-type like Ursaring, you're definitely the best choice. Go, Funky!"

From the flash of Ritchie's third Poké Ball emerged a Pokémon of a fairly small size and stature. Its overall mass came from its body, which was basically round and covered with scruffy white fur with triangular ears on top. Its brown arms and legs each had a pair of metal wristlets and anklets. However, its most notable physical feature was the pulsing vein stress mark on the left temple.

"_Pragh… Pragh…!_" the Pokémon snorted heavily, blowing visible steam from its nostrils.

"And Ritchie's final revealed Pokémon is Primeape!" the commentator announced. "I wonder how the lad comes up with these wacky nicknames!"

The crowd watched on, cheering and shouting on as enthusiastically as they normally would. Two notably short-tempered Pokémon were on the field, viciously staring down one another. In a similar yet ironic twist, Ritchie and Paul shared their own heated but calmer stare down before resuming their battle.

"Ursaring, Bulk Up!"

"You use Bulk Up too, Funky!"

Both Ursaring and Funky flexed their arms up as bright crimson aura emanated over their heads and backsides. However, while Ursaring briefly shown the muscles in its forearms tightening up, Funky had decided to show off its arm and leg muscles with different flexing bodybuilder poses. This particular Primeape appeared to have a wider personality than the norm of its species.

* * *

_In one of the Pokémon Center meeting rooms…_

"Not bad, but still amateurs," Stephan commented, proudly flexing a beefy bicep with a large grin.

His partner, Sawk, sent him a look before resuming the ongoing battle on the large monitor with the other idle contestants around them.

* * *

"Funky, use Cross Chop!"

The Primeape crossed its arms as they started to glow white with its stored fighting energy. Funky had then dashed forward, kicking up dust and pieces of grass in its wake. Ursaring was caught in surprise when Funky appeared right in front of it, leaping up and striking it in the chest with the Cross Chop. Ursaring roared in pain, momentarily lumbering back before regaining its footing.

"Use Hammer Arm!"

Ursaring began its raging retaliation with a powered forearm, aiming to punch out Funky's lights. However, Funky proved to be comically elusive by leaping away from the Hammer Arm while making chattering noises resembling laughter as it did so, only to wind up enraging Ursaring even more.

"You can't catch Funky!" Ritchie taunted. "Now Funky, Karate Chop!"

"Use Slash!"

The two animated Pokémon went forward with their respective attacks. Funky leapt up for the Karate Chop, revealing a white-glowing fist outstretched open to strike down. Ursaring, in turn, sent up a paw of glowing sharpened claws to swipe up its irritating opponent. Simultaneously, the two attacks struck one another, the Karate Chop slamming hard on Ursaring's neck while Slash scraped up Funky's face and sending the Pig Monkey Pokémon flying high.

Ursaring remarkably recovered quickly from the Karate Chop strike in spite of the super effective hit, raring to go at the vulnerable Primeape that's been quite the nuisance.

"Use Focus Blast!"

The Hibernator Pokémon then conjured a sizeable light blue orb of energy, vibrating off power, between its hands. Just before Funky could land back on the ground, it was struck in the face by a swift toss of the Focus Blast. A small explosion had erupted on contact, the force sending it into a wall. Ursaring gave a faint smirk, satisfied that the hit made up for its missed Hammer Arm.

Though in a short moment in spite of the crash, Funky leapt out of the smoke and right back into the field. It appeared to be quite worn out from the attacks, as did the opposing Ursaring.

"Now Funky…!" Ritchie began.

"Ursaring…!" Paul called out, almost in tandem.

"Karate Chop / Use Slash back to back!"

Funky and Ursaring charged forward once again for another altercation, fists and claws glowing brazenly to be used in combat. They exchanged attacks while avoiding the other, Ursaring surprisingly as well as Funky in terms of evasion. Some Slashes across the chest and Karate Chops on the head managed to get through, but these two heated Pokémon have shown their resilient endurance with every traded blow.

"This is incredible, ladies and gents!" the commentator cried out as the ongoing physical confrontation went on. "Neither one plans on letting up while the other survives. I know I don't want to be in a dark alley at night with these two powerhouses!"

The scuffle came to an end in Ursaring's favor as its last Slash managed to knock Funky back to its side of the grass field. Funky came rolling to a stop, face down and greatly worn out even more.

"Funky, get up!" Ritchie yelled out. "I know you can do it!"

His Primeape was breathing heavily as it stood back on its feet. However, something appeared different about it. The stress mark on its forehead appeared to be pulsing bigger and more vigorously. A sharp gleam crossed its normally furious eyes. And a flame of red aura momentarily flared out of Funky's body.

"_Pryyagh!_" Funky snorted, seeming to have reenergized as it flexed out its arms.

"What the…?!" Paul muttered incredulously.

* * *

"What's happened to Funky?" Dawn asked, amazed by the turn of events.

"I recognize that Ability, one of my previous challengers managed to win a Cascade Badge because of it," Misty explained. "It's called Anger Point and it activates when the user receives a critical hit. That last Slash must've triggered it."

"What does Anger Point do?"

"It maximizes the attack power of the Pokémon with that Ability when it receives a critical hit from the attacker. Trust me, Dawn. It's not pretty."

* * *

"Now Funky, Cross Chop!"

The Pig Monkey Pokémon leapt up in the air, higher than it normally did. Paul and Ursaring looked up as Funky had centered itself within the morning sun, diving down with a particularly brutal looking Cross Chop. The rage in its eyes was all too palpable.

"Ursaring, out of the way!"

Ursaring managed to leap back as Funky crashed into the ground and smashing a crater twice its size in front of it. The dust cleared quickly and Funky was back on one knee, in a predatory stance.

"Funky, use ThunderPunch!"

The Primeape charged electricity into one fist before leaping up and sending it up Ursaring's chin. A bit of static discharge managed to latch onto Ursaring from the ThunderPunch, sparking off small and gradual. Ursaring tumbled back, nearly exhausted from its bouts with its raging opponent. It attempted to catch its breath as it placed its hands on its knees.

"Alright Funky, finish it with another ThunderPunch!" Ritchie called out.

Funky tightened its fist as electricity crackled around it once more. In spite of the power boost from its induced raged, it felt confident in taking down its larger foe. Funky ran in rather recklessly while Ursaring was still holding onto its knees, only to receive the shock of its life.

"_Urr-raaaargh!_" Ursaring roared, straightening its torso and arms back up. Funky was thrown off by the sudden roar and retreated.

A horrible crimson aura emanated from its body, as though it was using Bulk Up, but there were different features about it. The same bloody color of the aura filled up its eyes. At the same time of the fearsome display, static electricity crackled about its body. Funky wasn't intimidated and instead, flared out its own raging power.

"Ladies and gents, it looks like it is Ursaring's turn to power up via its special Ability, Guts!" the commentator exclaimed. "Together Funky's recently activated Anger Point, the next hit might be the last for either one! A battle of rage-pockets!"

_The ThunderPunch must've paralyzed Ursaring,_ Ritchie thought, displeased with the new results. _I've got to finish this now._

Paul noted his focused look, predicting and sharing the same idea under that assumption.

"Funky, let's end this! Use Cross Chop!"

His Primeape leapt up into the air once with white glowing crossing forearms, this time making sure that it chops down its opponent.

"Hammer Arm!"

Ursaring intently pounded its fists together, holding up its equally glowing forearms up high to smash in anything coming in from above.

In a mere few seconds, the dual attacks collided and a bright force erupted from the clash. The backlash blew throughout the field as Ritchie and Paul shielded themselves from the aftermath shockwaves. The flash of light that occurred from the collision died down soon enough and both Ursaring and Funky were standing and facing down one another; it had become a final battle of willpower for those two.

It felt like a century passing between their terrifying stare down. Every spectator held his or her breath, anxiously looking upon the field. Even the commentator refused to break the silence. At the drop of a hat or a blink of an eye, anything could happen.

Then something happened.

"_Prhy…_"

Funky stumbled about on its feet. Everyone glanced forward, closer to see.

_*Beat*_

_*Beat*_

_*Beat*_

_*Beat*_

_*Beat*_

_*BEAT*_

_*THUD*_

Another short moment of silence passed through until the commentator decided to say something, just to break this painfully awkward passage of time.

"And Ursaring is down!" he announced, accompanied with soft cheers and shouts.

Ursaring was revealed to have fallen forward, face down in the ground. Funky was breathing heavily. In spite of still having its attack boost, its stamina was completely drained from the last clash. The excessive stress ultimately took its toll as its body was practically numb. Funky did what it could do at that point.

_*Thud*_

"And… Funky is also down!" the commentator added.

The referee looked over the fallen bodies. Funky was lying on its back, sharing the same dazed expression as did Ursaring, whose face was visible from the side. It was time to make the judgment.

"Both Funky and Ursaring are unable to battle!" the referee declared, raising both flags in the air. "It's a draw!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, that was quite the barbaric battle to behold! As for the current standing, Paul is down one out of three Pokémon while Ritchie is at his last Pokémon, who suffered poisoning right before switching out. Can Ritchie turn this around?"

"Ursaring, great work," Paul mumbled with eyes glumly closed, arm outstretched with the Hibernator Pokémon's Poké Ball recalling it.

"Funky, return, you did great," Ritchie spoke in passing as the fainted Primeape was recalled.

He then took out and held up his Charizard's Poké Ball, looking upon it unwaveringly. Zippo had already suffered some damage from its first release into the battle and for as long as it would stay out in the field, the poison would eventually sap it of all of its strength.

_Paul still has his weakened Nidoking and one more Pokémon,_ Ritchie thought, taking a quick look at his impassive opponent. _It's going to be a long shot, but we'll need to somehow be able to outsmart and overpower him despite our limits._

"Nidoking, stand by for battle!"

The Veilstone City Trainer sent back out his Nidoking, who appeared to have recovered some strength, but still carried on battle damage from his bout against Ringo and short brawl with Zippo. As the commentator made a quick remark about Paul resuming the battle with Nidoking, Ritchie decided to give in everything with Zippo.

"Alright, Zippo, you're up again!"

His last Pokémon was back out again, appearing the same since it had been poisoned. Violet sparks violently discharged about, draining away another small portion of Zippo's stamina. Zippo shook its head and attempted to appear strong, for the sake of its Trainer.

"And now we get to see Zippo again, this time as Ritchie's final Pokémon in this match," the commentator stated out. "The poison it had received previously from Nidoking is still in effect. Can it find a way to turn the tables?"

"Let the battle continue!" the referee declared.

"We're not done yet!" Ritchie yelled out. "Zippo, use Slash!"

Zippo quickly took off into the air, in spite of the poison circulating in its body. Its wings appeared to have momentarily regained strength as they expanded out and successfully allowed the Flame Pokémon to fly. The claws on Zippo's right hand were glowing white as they sharpened and lengthened. With a tentative swipe in the air and a huffing bellow, Zippo dove down, ready to Slash at Nidoking.

"Nidoking, Poison Jab!"

Nidoking stood his ground as he powered up a Poison Jab into his right fist. Zippo was ready to strike, but unfortunately the timing could not be any more horrible than it was as the poison decided to make itself quite the hindrance mid attack. Zippo cringed as the poisonous sparks briefly intensified around its body and sapped a bit more of its stamina.

Its Slash was narrowly avoided overhead as Nidoking ducked, having noticed the moment of weakness. He then threw the Poison Jab as an uppercut into Zippo's abdomen. Zippo managed to catch itself on the ground despite having been knocked out of the air from the last attack. However, things were certainly not looking up in it future.

"Now Poison Jab back to back!" Paul commanded.

"Zippo, dodge every one of them! Then counter with Steel Wing!" Ritchie intervened.

Nidoking stepped up once again with a rancorous grin, this time with both fists glowing poison. He ran up to Zippo while it was trying to catch its breath. Zippo was still mindful of its remaining strength, and thus managed to utilize its ability to fly for short moments in evading every thrown Poison Jab its way. It should be fortunate that there was nothing on the field to otherwise obstruct its escapes.

Several Poison Jabs were thrown and the Charizard was able to roll away, long enough to prepare its counterattack. Steel Wing became active and was used to knock away Nidoking's persistent barrage, blow by blow.

"What's this, ladies and gents? Zippo's starting to regain momentum as it's able to defend itself against the Poison Jab onslaught," the commentator pointed out. "And because Poison-type attacks have no effect on Steel, courtesy of Steel Wing, Zippo's managed to negate much of Nidoking's power."

"… Poison Jab!" Paul growled.

Nidoking could sense his Trainer's growing aggravation, using it to fuel his own motivation. He powered up one last fist with his inner poison, waiting for the exact moment to strike down Zippo. Ritchie's Charizard has been on complete guard the entire time since recovering from the first Poison Jab, keeping its Steel Wing defense up.

They've reached a deadlock…

But that was until…

"Zippo!" Ritchie cried.

The poison sparks overtook and distracted Zippo with its draining discomfort, at all moments. Nidoking locked into his target with narrowed eyes, sending a potent Poison Jab right into Zippo's face. The Flame Pokémon fumbled back onto the ground, this time stationed on its knees. It was becoming closer to defeat, even evident with the lackluster flame burning from the tip of its tail.

"Zippo, please!" Ritchie called out again. "Don't give up!"

"Ladies and gents, Zippo's currently down, but can it find the will to fight?" the commentator voiced aloud as every spectator watched on with breaths held up.

"Zippo, _I believe in you!_"

Paul watched on neutrally, astounded on how much emotion a Trainer would put into encouraging his or her Pokémon. His astonishment grew even more as Zippo responded by slowly standing back up on its feet, leering fiercely at Nidoking as a bright burning red-orange aura emanated from its body. The flame on its tail even grew three times its original size as Zippo let loose a fearsome bellow that rippled through the field.

"Hmph, that power," Paul mused, softly smiling.

"This is it, ladies and gentlemen," the commentator began. "Zippo's Blaze has just activated due to its low endurance, ensuring greater power behind its Fire-type attacks! Will this be enough to turn the tides in Ritchie's favor?"

* * *

"If Zippo can take out Paul's Nidoking with one hit, it might have a chance against his last Pokémon," Dawn said optimistically.

"Yeah, provided Zippo can last out for the remaining round," Misty pointed out. "One more direct hit and that Charizard's a goner. Zippo's still a very strong Pokémon, one of his strongest in fact."

"Who's the other strongest?" Dawn asked.

"Take a guess," Misty suggested with a wink.

* * *

"Now Zippo, it's time to show off our secret weapon! Use Blast Burn!"

The small blue pupils in Zippo's eyes lit up in the same flaming aura that erupted from its body as the flame of its tail grew even larger than it had from the activation of Blaze. The outer flames seemed to radiate, forming a great sphere of fire that encapsulated the Charizard. Zippo then opened its mouth, gathering and focusing the flames into a fireball more visibly appealing than a simple Flamethrower.

With a raucous roar, Zippo unleashed the Blast Burn, taking the form of a powerful stream of flames with the fireball in the lead. The tail of the attack was a transparent orange sphere of destruction that incinerated the grass on the field. Paul remained indifferent.

"Nidoking, Protect!"

"What?!" many 'familiar' voices, Ritchie's included, yelped.

Right as the Blast Burn approached Nidoking, the Drill Pokémon held up his hands and conjured a large spherical turquoise barrier that held up against the powerful Fire-type attack. The Protect showed no signs of giving way, even against a Blaze-powered Blast Burn.

"Either my eyes are deceiving me, or Paul had pulled his own counter trick against Ritchie's Charizard," the commentator also said in surprise. "That Protect will negate any damage that Zippo's Blast Burn could've possibly done, and at a great cost too."

The Blast Burn eventually burned out and disppeared, having immolated the entire field in its wake save for a large circular patch of grass that Nidoking stood upon. Zippo's body slouched and staggered, having used up much of its remaining power in its last attack and feeling discouraged on how vain the attempt was.

"Like I said: so predictable that it's pathetic," Paul repeated. Ritchie looked down to the ground, frustrated at the inevitable loss and elimination looming over him. "However…" He looked back up at the Veilstone City Trainer. "The power behind your Charizard's Blast Burn with Blaze activated can't be ignored. Only at another moment in time have I witnessed such power and passion that I hope to have myself one day. Even as Funky managed to take down Ursaring, you still have a long way to go before you can even hope to compare yourself to any remaining Trainer in this tournament."

"Gee, to think that you compared me to Ash earlier this match," Ritchie mumbled, finding himself smiling in spite of his current circumstance. "I still remember watching his first match in the Champions League. His Pikachu was something else. Sparky was jealous, though… he wasn't the only one."

Paul took a deep breath. It's been a while since he felt quite energized at a Pokémon battle. There was no doubt that he enjoyed the thrill of fighting and snatching victory, but he had a goal to live up to at the moment, which also included taking down anyone in his way.

"Nidoking, Thunderbolt!"

Swinging his arms as a gesture to measure his remaining strength, Nidoking began generating a larger amount of voltage from his energy. Starting from his horn before sparking out throughout his body, Nidoking released the Thunderbolt from the direction of the horn and striking the immobile Zippo.

To say that that Flame Pokémon was being fried was somewhat an understatement. With little to no stamina left and having been rendered useless after using up Blast Burn, Zippo's fate was apparent to all once the Thunderbolt ceased and wispy smoke fizzled and evaporated from its body.

"Zippo is unable to battle!" the referee ultimately declared, raising the flag to Paul. "Nidoking wins! And the victor of this three-on-three battle is Paul of Veilstone City!"

The audience of the grass arena cheered and applauded for the great battle, whether it had been in Paul's conquest or not. The grand monitor stationed above eliminated Ritchie's image and showed off the Veilstone City Trainer as the winner of that battle.

"Having lost only one Pokémon in battle, Paul ensures his advancement into the third round of the New Island Champions Conference!" the commentator celebrated. "This has otherwise been an engrossing battle that I know I won't quickly forget. Both Paul and Ritchie have shown that they deserved to compete here. Give them another round of applause, ladies and gentlemen!"

"YAY! YAH! HOO!" various hot-blooded spectators cried out, showing off their excessive joy in the battle.

Ritchie gave a quick wave off to them before tending to his fallen Charizard in the field. Zippo recovered enough energy to sit comfortably on the charred ground; no doubt the field crew would have to grow back some grass for the next scheduled battle within the next hour or so.

"Zippo, you did awesome, don't worry about it," Ritchie murmured in sympathy, to which Zippo barked happily.

They noticed Nidoking was still standing right in front of them just before being recalled back into his Poké Ball. Once his red energy form retreated, Paul appeared from where his Pokémon stood, looking as stoic as ever with both hands in pockets.

"That was a really great match, Paul," Ritchie spoke up, smiling good-naturedly. "Thanks for that."

"Yeah, you too," Paul replied tersely, glancing around at no particular direction. "So… I'll see you later."

"Hey, before you go, would you mind if we had a rematch one day?" Ritchie requested earnestly, standing back up with Zippo. "You were tougher than I thought, definitely tougher than back when you faced Ash at the Sinnoh League. I thought I had a chance against you, but now I know I've fallen way behind you two." Paul looked at him curiously as he continued. "You know, I actually couldn't decide before the match whether to use Zippo or another Pokémon of mine that you've had experience battling against already."

"Let me guess. Was it a Pikachu?"

"That's right!"

As Ritchie answered back, he had out another Poké Ball and opened it, releasing the said Pokémon onto his shoulder. Indeed it was a Pikachu, with a particular characteristic of having a scruff of fur standing out from the top of his head. Even the Pikachu's voice was slightly different than Ash's Pikachu when it gave a greeting upon release.

"Similar, yet altogether different," Paul mused as he examined the Pikachu.

"Sparky here insisted that he go out and fight in Zippo's stead, but I chose Zippo to battle you today so I guess I had that coming," Ritchie explained with an attempted chuckle. "He really wanted to prove that he was capable as Ash's Pikachu."

"Here's a word to the wise," Paul interrupted. "Instead of trying to model after them, strive to be even better than them, get it?"

"I got it now," Ritchie sighed, recalling only Zippo to its Poké Ball while still keeping Sparky out. "But that doesn't mean we can't find out our own battle style together. So will you be willing to have a rematch with me one day?"

"Yes, I look forward to it," Paul replied with a respectful nod before turning away.

"By the way, if you don't mind telling, what was your third Pokémon from our battle?"

"… Magmortar."

Watching the small interaction at the center of the grass field at a fair distance from the stands, he adjusted his red cap from the visor and smiled faintly.

* * *

**As you all just read, I wanted to see how well I could write a battle with Paul in it since he'll certainly be a significant battler later on in this fic. I also have nothing against Ritchie and do think he could've made it farther than the second round, but those are the brakes. In a real tournament, you never know who'll be facing exactly unless you've really done some snooping around.**

**Speaking of wanting for more, I may continue off on Ash's situation next chapter before his turn to battle again. That is all. **

**Anyway, what do y'all think about Ritchie's new Pokémon mentioned here and their particular nicknames that I sto…-****creatively borrowed from is what I meant to say, err type?**

**In addition to that, it's time to measure up my writing skills. Please review!**

**L-ater!**

**And good luck to those starting school soon or already!**


	12. Waiting For Ash!

**Hey, everyone! **

**I apologize for taking this long now, but this kind of thing happens from time to time. I can't imagine that I've now taken almost a month to update, but that happens when fall semester really starts breathing down your neck with various assignments and reports. ****I can feel for my brother now and the possibility of why he had quit three years ago now, but like I posted on my page, I won't discontinue despite the length of time it'll eventually take between updates.**

* * *

Excitement could be seen roaring about on New Island as various intense battles took place around the five stadiums of rock, grass, water, ice, and the regular dirt battlefield free of gimmicks and tricks. Even as the noon sun rose to its highest point and casted shadows were visibly nonexistent to the point that they were rendered as black circles under their solid forms, the enthusiasm and love of Pokémon held strong.

After finishing up his battle for the week and waiting for his Pokémon to be fully healed, Paul had opted to wander about the island to satisfy his own curiosities, from finding new Pokémon and rating how strong they would be to last in the tournament.

Without even considering a lunch break, he wandered back to the only forest planted and grown on New Island by cutting through the small park. Outside of battling, this part of the island was the only place he saw much action.

Conversing with Gym Leader Sabrina…

Dealing with Salon Maiden Anabel…

And keeping an eye out for Pokémon Trainer Ash…

He felt a small smile curl up on his mouth, having reflected on such past thoughts. He knew that he never planned on interacting much with people, only with those he would face in battle and those that have earned his interest or respect. But seeing that particular group of friends from time to time only lead up to the confirmation on how that one young man in the red cap was of great worth to them…

And begrudgingly to admit, it applied to him as well.

A former rival that held ideals opposing his own in the past, who had proved him wrong by showing the kind of power he was able to unlock from a former Pokémon, it wasn't far out of reach for Paul to want to have a rematch with him again in the later rounds.

Of course, the main thing that had been going on since the start of the New Island Champions League and had been the main concern of his former traveling friends was the remarkable change in appearance and somewhat in personality of him.

Now that was something to look into.

"It is indeed," a familiar, rather monotonous voice spoke up.

Paul looked up, finally aware of his surroundings within the forest. In front of him stood Sabrina and her Haunter, conveniently meeting him at a spacious clearing resembling a typical Pokémon battlefield.

"I guess I was completely lost in my thoughts after all if I didn't even know where I was going," Paul quipped. "Hope you enjoyed my battle, by the way."

"You were cool and efficient against Ritchie," Sabrina briefly commented. "From your own past experiences battling Ash, you were able to predict some of his strategies and moves while only having lost one Pokémon overall."

"His Primeape wasn't to be underestimated, though I was actually surprised that Ursaring fell to it instead to his next Pokémon."

"Right, but now, what's done is done," Sabrina said, folding her arms while giving a knowing look. "Though I've got to say, I never imagined that you're actually concerned for Ash."

"I'm not."

"So I'm safe to assume that broodiness you entered here with _wasn't_ riddled with curiosity over what happened to him since you last spoke with him at Lily of the Valley Island? It's natural to be curious over those kinds of changes."

"Can we get on with this?" Paul interrupted impatiently.

"Very well," Sabrina replied. "You've been expecting this the next time we would meet up after your second Champions League battle."

"That you're going to 'help me' with why I'm still losing to Brandon, I remember," Paul reiterated, narrowing his gaze upon the Saffron City Gym Leader. "What is it that you're going to do to me now?"

Sabrina said nothing, but answered back with a mysterious smile. It wasn't wide enough to indicate any sort of mischievous intent, nor did it have the subtlety of malicious attempt. Paul didn't understand despite having a high ability and sense of cracking through cryptic clues.

She then slowly walked backwards, carefully placing one foot past the other while Haunter floated about and around her, cackling its eyes out. If this was a test of patience, then Paul would've been enduring rather well in such pretentious circumstances. But then again, there is a time and place for everything.

"What is this?" he demanded, right as Sabrina came to a complete stop before reaching the edge of the clearing. Haunter also stopped cackling wildly and disappeared. Paul then saw his answer drawn from Sabrina's waist in the form of a Poké Ball. "You've planned this out beforehand, haven't you?"

"You're going to battle me next."

* * *

"You know, I never imagined that match going that way with how it started out."

"You'd be surprised on what you find in high-leveled competitions like these, Dawn," Misty replied.

Both young women were walking down a bazaar street, various games, souvenir, and snack stands lined up on both sides around them. Amidst the scattered tourists and resting Pokémon Trainers, the path they walked through was clear and straight. While Dawn mulled over her new Gym Leader friend's words, she spotted another familiar figure clothed in shades of spring green appearing to search for something.

"Hey, isn't that…?" Dawn began, catching Misty's attention as she too spotted her up ahead.

"Georgia," Misty finished on her behalf.

Said Dragon Buster heard her name and saw the two girls that were somewhat associated with Iris. She looked over and saw no sign of her rival tagging along whatsoever. As a result, she seemed to have given off a rather friendlier demeanor and placed a hand on her hip as a casual posture.

"Well look what the street faire blew in today," Georgia jested. "I don't see you girls often away from the gang and whatnot."

"We still get together at times when no one's worrying about staying in the tournament," Misty said offhandedly. "Though we just found out that Gym Leader Chili, Cilan's brother, just got eliminated in his second match."

"Yeah, so it'll only be Cilan and Cress moving on to the third round," Dawn added.

"Is that so?" Georgia remarked with a quick shrug. "That's too bad really. I've heard that out of the three Striaton Gym Leaders, Chili often got the short end of the stick."

"Anyway, how've you been, Georgia? You looked like you were looking for someone."

Georgia appeared to have briefly stiffened from Dawn's observation before resuming her tough appearance, much to the confusion to the other two as they also exchanged looks at that split second. Georgia also appeared to be forcing a smile on herself, indicated by the twitching corners of her lips.

"I… r-really don't know what you're… talking about," Georgia replied with a voice as strained as her smile; both Dawn and Misty were not convinced.

"One, we saw you were searching around," Misty pointed out, holding up a finger to count up a few more factors against the Dragon Buster. "And two, you're a terrible liar if you think _that_ performance could fool us."

Georgia gave off a defiant snort before ultimately relenting on her piteous bluff. She momentarily shook her head while muttering something low and incoherent under her breath, something the other two girls couldn't catch, before looking back up to them.

"Fine, not that I'm concerned if _you_ get involved with it, as long as Iris doesn't," Georgia stated.

"Hold on a minute, don't tell me it's _this_ again," Misty groaned, much to Dawn's bafflement. "It's only been a day already."

"What's happening again?" Dawn asked.

"Well I had the chance of spotting Ash within the crowd with my… powerful vision!" Georgia proclaimed, waving her hands in place with dramatic flair.

"Ash?! He's here? Where?!"

Dawn childishly got caught up with trying to look for her missing friend and previous older brother figure while Misty sighed heavily at the seeming ridiculousness taking place about her. She approached Georgia and placed a surprisingly gentle hand on her shoulder; Georgia's previous experiences with her hands often resulted with lumps under her cap, but the pain only lessened if Iris was seen also at the receiving hand of the Cerulean City Gym Leader's fists.

"Listen, you told us yesterday about your 'ultimate' plans in getting together with Ash," Misty began, "but I still have to say that it's still selfish on your part in trying to even withhold that kind of information from his _long-time_ friends that want to see and talk to him again."

"And that's why I'm actually bothering to tell you of my close encounter with him," Georgia retorted back evenly.

She felt Misty's grip slowly tighten upon her shoulder.

"You didn't even want to disclose that information because of us being friends with Iris. Do you really hate her that much?"

"The fact still remains that she's a Dragon Trainer aspiring to become a Dragon Master, thus is a natural enemy for me as an A-Class Dragon Buster."

"You still didn't answer my question, Georgia. Do you really hate her that much?"

"Uh…"

Georgia was surprised that she'd fallen speechless to a simple question as such. Iris herself wasn't too bad of a person aside from her childish and hypocritical tendencies, almost like a seeing a reflection of herself based from behavior alone. The only reason Iris also stood out to her was from the various rumors and such passed by word of mouth by the time she went through the Village of Dragons, mentioning her battle prowess. This was before she first met up with the Dragon Trainer herself, only discovering at that time that Axew was her only true Dragon Pokémon.

As silly as her memories from hearing about and seeking out Iris was in retrospect, Georgia chose her emphasis in defeating solely Dragon-types as a Pokémon Trainer since her devastating loss against a powerful Dragon Trainer. Nightmares of the final vicious Outrage had plagued her since then and before meeting Iris. Her path was decided to her complete awareness, but at the same time, that path also caused her to overlook the previous details and overall perspective of her decisions in butting heads with Iris.

However, pride remained the main reason that she would never allow herself to openly admit to such things, no matter how close to the truth they are.

"Guys… I mean… Girls! I see him!" Dawn's voice exclaimed, catching both Misty and Georgia off guard. "Over there! In the crowd!"

The three of them scrambled together, glancing over animatedly over the direction to where Dawn was pointing out. While Misty and Georgia attempted to climb on each other to see, Dawn was able to look over them effortlessly and saw the red cap disappear into the growing crowd. Just before the blue-haired Coordinator could even utter a sound, the balance of the three girls on top of one another gave in through their unstable shifts of weight.

Ultimately, they fell, with Misty somehow winding up on the bottom with Dawn at the top and Georgia trapped in between the two bodies. Their incomplete pursuit of Ash would have to be postponed with the attention they attracted with their minor comical accident bringing in various concerned tourists and Trainers already standing around the area to tend to them.

* * *

_A little while later…_

"It was great catching up with May, Max, and Brock, don't you agree, friend?" Anabel asked her Espeon, who mewled back just as delightfully. "It was also pleasant getting to know Cilan and Iris a bit more, too. Ash really made some unique friends over his journey."

A relaxing lunch with Ash's friends instead of trying to find her fellow Frontier Brains, Anabel felt that her own horizons have been expanding more than when she was a former roaming Pokémon Trainer. The friendships and connections people make was certainly a treasured benefit to have on a personal Pokémon journey.

As if by habitual routine, the Salon Maiden and her Sun Pokémon were heading into the New Island Park as to spend time by themselves. While there may be other people and Pokémon about, they were never bothered except by those who knew them; chances of the latter happening since the past week since the Champions League began were fairly slim.

Though as they took their usual route, the gem on Espeon's forehead had lit up in a brief second. Espeon took notice of a certain change through her psychic powers, glancing around to where her premonition was directing her. Anabel was also quick to notice as they both stopped in their path.

"What's wrong, Espeon?" Anabel inquired, bending on her knees to eye level with Espeon.

"_Ei-fyie Ef,_" Espeon murmured, directing her head at a lingering direction slightly to her right in front.

The Salon Maiden caught what her friend had just communicated and was in a brief state of astonishment. Also she understood was that a certain someone was nearby, by which in her mind had linked a probable, yet at the same time almost impossible choice concerning the identity of the mystery guy. Though why the vision came upon Espeon now instead of also happening in previous encounters was another mystery left to be solved.

After a quick moment of collecting her thoughts, Anabel turned her head to where Espeon was looking and saw him up close for what could be the second time in a row this week in consecutive days and the overall third time on New Island. She reflexively covered her mouth with both hands to hold back an uncharacteristic squeaking gasp.

There he was out in the open, sitting what could be considered casually upon a wooden park bench. The visor of his red cap still concealed the top portion of his face above his nose in shadow. His Pikachu appeared to be content and napping on his lap. However, in the next passing seconds, his ears and face twitched. Pikachu was waking up, his first sight being the lilac-haired young woman and her Espeon looking back at him and his Trainer.

It was only then that Ash appeared to have noticed them as well with Pikachu also maintaining his eyes upon them. His head slightly tilted up, but it was still not enough for the shadow to be lifted from his eyes.

"Long time, no see," Anabel attempted to jest, trying to maintain a friendly smile.

Ash didn't say anything back, yet the strangest phenomenon was that the air around him felt a bit more approachable. Anabel didn't feel as intimidated to be around him since adjusting to his peculiarly new behavior; she felt it as another feeling within her persuading her to go closer to him this time. The urging was stronger than before, so it must be an opportunity.

"_Pii…_" Pikachu grunted and yawned, sitting up on Ash's lap while still looking at the two.

Anabel didn't need the additional confirmation from Pikachu's emotion that it was alright to get closer to them. Given with her own training as a Frontier Brain, she managed to push off outside pressure that would otherwise dissuade her from doing so. She calmly walked alongside Espeon to the side of the bench that was unoccupied.

"… …" Ash kept his gaze on her firmly; as unreadable as he knew he was to her, she was unreadable at times to him.

"Mind if I sit here?" Anabel suggested politely, taking her seat next to him regardless while Espeon rested at her feet. "So… how've you been, Ash? Ready for your next battle?"

"… … …You want to know what really happened to me."

"Ah!" Anabel gasped.

"_Fie,_" Espeon snorted, smirking a little; she knew it was going to happen.

He talked.

Ash really talked.

Vocally and in conversation instead of standard battle commands.

And he was certainly straightforward with his replying question, which sounded more like a statement, even though he appeared to have paused in the beginning. Anabel blinked a few more times while Ash, though appearing a bit puzzled to her behavior, harmlessly ignored it and waited for her response.

"Well… yeah," Anabel said bluntly. "As I told you before, everyone's worried about you, your old friends especially. They feel as though you betrayed them."

"… _I wouldn't be surprised if they already did feel that way…_" Ash muttered under breath; Anabel couldn't catch what he said, but could tell something was amiss.

"I said that I'd be here for you," Anabel repeated from last night's encounter. Though she wanted to ask about his sudden change of heart, she felt it would've been wiser to coax him to come out instead of steering him herself. "Would you join me on a walk to the forest? There'll be less people around, if that would make you feel better."

"… Mm," Ash grunted with a nod.

He stood up fairly tall as Pikachu leapt up to his rightful place on his shoulder. Anabel followed suit, getting to her feet and measuring the top half of her head passing the level of Ash's shoulders. He didn't look back to her, but waited for her to start the forest walk she wanted. She did so and soon, they were walking down their path next to each other.

And as tempted as she was at being as close to Ash as she daydreamed at times, Anabel resisted the urge to reach and hold his hand, inwardly fearing that the sudden act might startle him. Though it may have been likely that he wouldn't care, she didn't mind taking it slow with him, considering what they're about to do… and what she was about to learn.

"Just one more thing, Ash," Anabel spoke up.

"…?"

"Please… tell me anything you need to say."

* * *

**And I'll end here for now. Since this is supposed to be AbilityShipping and I momentarily got out of focus with Paul's side story and battle, I'm making up for it now by slowly recounting a bit of Ash's tale. It's about time since I've passed the tenth chapter mark now. **

**Speculation is up to you, readers, as I really like to hear and know what you're all thinking at this point.**

**Just remember that I'm not dead, but it may be a while for me to get up and running again with fall semester taking me places.**

**So please, now's the time to measure up my writing skills. Please review!**

**L-ater!**


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